


Ancient Mars

by greglet



Series: Spacesuits and Satellites [1]
Category: The Martian (2015), The Martian - All Media Types, The Martian - Andy Weir
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-05-09
Updated: 2017-07-10
Packaged: 2018-06-07 11:50:28
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 32
Words: 141,546
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6802603
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/greglet/pseuds/greglet
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>“I wasn’t avoiding him, I was just-” </p>
<p>“Avoiding him?” Venkat asked sarcastically.</p>
<p>Mindy Park doesn't want to meet Mark Watney but when he's in the building and appreciative of her efforts, she can't hide any longer.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

During Mark’s descent Mindy watched on the large screens in Mission Control and, like every other stressful event he had been through, she held her breath for him again. In fairness, it wasn’t just Mark’s descent this time, it was the whole crew - the full crew as they were sent in the first place and the whole world really was watching. She wrung her hands under her desk as the video stream showed the parachutes deploying successfully. The not-so-faint feeling of nausea she had had for the past four days was tight in her stomach as the crew hit the water and her sweaty palms went to cover her eyes in relief. The room, like so many times before, erupted in applause and shouting, jumping staff members gyrating across the floor as tears clouded her vision.

A strong hand from Venkat was clapped to her shoulder - the silent show of an ‘it’s all over’ and ‘a job well done’ - before he left to deal with the hungry press with a smiling Annie galloping behind him. It _was_ all over and it _was_ a job well done, but the lingering tears and ebbing, but not quite vanishing knot of worry, panic and stress was telling her that while the worst was over, it wasn't the last time she would hear of this. 

A week later, after a much deserved weekend off for all the main staff from the AresIII rescue and primary mission (which she happily found included her), she was back at her desk pointing her satellites in other directions beyond the now deflated hab. She did start there, however, just to reassure herself there were no other forgotten astronauts struggling to survive on a barren wasteland. But, with no movement from months ago except sand and wind, she was satisfied to point elsewhere. 

It wasn’t until Venkat had turned up did she realise three hours had flown past and she was due for a break. Her hope for that cup of coffee and microwavable macaroni cheese she brought with her was dwindling as Venkat moved straight towards her - with a smile and something he clearly wanted to say. 

“Mindy! How was your ‘vacay’? Get some rest?” Standing over her desk, his smile still sitting at his lips - it was the longest she’d seen him in a positive mood since Commander Lewis reported Mark on board the Hermes.

“Sorta" Mindy shrugged, "I know it’s been months but sometimes my sleeping patterns just revert to Mark Watney Mars Time and it puts me all out, but I got to see my mom for three days in a row before I had to fly back, so she was happy.” Adjusting her glasses as she swung her chair from left to right, Venkat nodded along but she could tell he was trying to get somewhere. She waited, raising her eyebrows to suggest that he either needed to say something or let her get her coffee. After an extra few seconds of silence, she pushed it. “Anything else?” 

“I was thinking, it’s been a week since they got back and I could get you some facetime with Watney if you want - you’re really the only one who hasn’t met him yet, and he’s appreciative of everyone - keeps saying he’s buying us beers.” Tilting his head as he gave her the offer, he was banking on ‘excitement’ or even ‘elation’ at the prospect but he definitely hadn’t been expecting the uneasiness that settled across her face. “What?”

“It’s just - he’s only back a week… doesn’t he have catching up to do with family and friends? I think it’s too soon for that.” Venkat scrunched his face, completely disapproving of her excuses. 

“You know as well as anyone that his friends were in that ship and yeah he’ll be with his parents, but what kid doesn’t need a little bit of breathin’ space from parents now and then? He’d be glad for it-”

“Really, it’s okay, I’m not saying no completely, just probably not right now.” Venkat sighed but accepted what Mindy was saying - maybe it wasn’t too soon for Mark, just too soon for her. After all, she had been watching him from 54.6 million kilometres away, a face-to-face might be a little scary.  
“Okay, okay, but I think you should meet him eventually - really, he probably owes you the most beers.” He waited a moment to get some form of agreement from Mindy and after a small smile and a nod he tapped her desk once and pointed at her in signal of ‘I’ll be back’, and left her to it. 

She deflated once he left the room. The sudden tightness in her stomach had been as unexpected for her as it had been for Venkat. She knew she would probably eventually run into Watney, but for what had been a chance sighting had turned into the greatest rescue mission the world had ever seen and she didn't want to act like she played a bigger part than she felt she really did. She rarely thought about how much a role she played in that, but her mom wouldn’t let her forget it, even though Mindy told her she was exaggerating. Still, even she admitted that if she hadn’t spotted him when she did, maybe the timings for everything else would have been too late. However, maybe it was self depreciation, but she had already convinced herself that if she hadn’t spotted him, someone else probably would have. The director, Teddy, was right - she had just been in the hotseat. Why did she really deserve to meet Watney? She was just lucky. Or maybe it was Mark that had been lucky. 

It was three months later the next time venkat appeared and Mindy knew the same proposition was coming her way. They had met since their last meeting, but every time there was always something different to talk about, to discuss or plan. But it was that look he had as he marched over to her desk that had her stomach knotting. 

“I know what you’re gonna say, but I’m busy - I have our tests to do, you know that, I don’t have free time for the next while and-” Her hands were flapping at all the papers and folders lined around her computer and under her feet - she was really swamped, but the interruption was worse news than she had been expecting. 

“Mindy, he’s in the building.” 

“Shit.” 

“What’s this all about? Why don’t you want to meet the most popular guy on Earth?” Leaning on her folders, he rested his chin on a palm as he interrogated her. She was literally the only person to have not had a meeting with the guy she saved when she should’ve been the first. She wasn’t present at the Watney Press Release or the Pre-Press Release or even the Post-Press Release with drinks for the rest of the staff. 

“It’s just weird, I spent all that time watching his every move - I don’t want to _tell_ him that.” Being someone’s stalker was all well and good when there was no chance of them ever finding out from millions of miles away, but when your boss wanted to cheerfully let them know, it was a different story. 

“Oh, come on, Mindy, you literally saved his life, it’s not like you’re outside his parents house or his apartment with a wide angle like the rest of the world.” Her non-committal shrug had him sighing, he knew he wasn’t going to win this battle with words but since Mark really was on his way over, she wasn’t going to escape. “Besides, I might’ve already told him about you.” Her look of alarm had his palms up defensively. “Nothing bad! He wanted to know where the search began so I told him - the little, messy, end-of-the-row desk of Miss Mindy Park." A quick flash of offense ran over Mindy's face at the thought of Venkat calling her desk messy. It was just busy. "He’s wondering why you hadn’t made time to say hi before, y’know.” Venkat eyed her, a look of slight disapproval from him had her dropping her head to her desk with a groan. 

“I wasn’t avoiding him, I was just-” 

“Avoiding him?” Venkat asked sarcastically, but anything else he was going to say was caught off by booming laughter after the whisk of the Mission Control door burst open. 

“You got it, man, just tell me where and when, okay?” The other half of the conversation was too far away to make out, but the sound of the door slapping shut had Mindy sitting up straight as if she had been shocked into the position. “Kapoor!” Mark yelled, pointing at him from across the room before making his way around half empty desks. The social energy from Watney radiated as he high fived and slapped the shoulders of the staff who were sitting around. Mindy noticed quickly that he was very eager to touch the people around him, as if he was trying to absorb as much company as he could. Three months was obviously still not enough to compared to almost two years on Mars, alone. 

“Kapoor, I was lookin’ for you, you disappeared but Mitch pointed me on my way - kinda forgot the layout of this place.” Mark might’ve been talking to Venkat but his eyes were on Mindy who was looking between her two superiors, trying to not look as horrible anxious as she felt. “Who’s th-” Realisation dawned on him - a realisation Mindy didn’t expect but Venkat was obviously glad about as a beaming grin broke out on his face. “Mindy Park! My saviour!” 

Mark made his way around Venkat and held out his hand to Mindy for her to shake it, but as she reached out to his hand he pulled her out her chair and into a hug. “You saved my life, you saved me from that dusty red piece of shit!” Letting her go, he was grinning widely while she just looked awkwardly to Venkat for help. 

“She didn’t just save your life, Mark, she was your Earth guardian-” Mindy shook her head at that, unsure disgust on her face at Venkat calling her Mark’s ‘Earth Guardian’. “Well, she was the one you were talking to with your morse code rocks and anything you did or anywhere you went, she knew first.” 

“That’s fucking amazing, thank you.” Mark, despite being a seemingly constant ball of social energy had calmed enough in that moment to give Mindy one of the most sincere thank you’s she had ever honestly received. “If you hadn’t have noticed me… I don’t know what would’ve happened - well, nothin’ would’ve happened, I might still be up there.” 

“Don’t worry about it, watching you was easy - at least I didn’t have to live it.” It was the first thing she had said since Mark had bounded over but he didn’t look like he agreed with it. 

“Venkat already told me what you did.” Venkat looked like he had been caught while Mindy looked at him, betrayed. Mark might have caught the silent correspondence but he said nothing of it. “Sleeping when I was, learnin’ morse code like I had to - and listening to my shitty messages! I wish I’d been told sooner - I’ve bought just about everyone a beer for their efforts in getting me home, but I think I owe you at least five rounds.” 

“You don’t owe me that many and I’m pretty swamped right now…” 

“Aw, no,” Turning to Venkat, he appealed to Mindy’s boss with a firm palm on his shoulder, “Kapoor, buddy, give her the night off, she deserves it!” 

“No, honestly, it’s oka-” Mindy, her protesting already defeated as Venkat nodded in agreement with Mark. 

“I think it could be good for you, you haven’t had an early night for five weeks.” Venkat shrugged and Mindy knew that there would be revenge for this eventually. Although, in hindsight, she was a lot less anxious than she was five minutes ago. Maybe it was just because he was so agreeable. However, getting off a few hours early to go for a drink with him was starting to make her nervous all over again… she was just glad she had made an effort to look nice for work today. 


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Again, if this is still well received, I'll probably write more so please let me know in the comments!

Mindy left her desk at five after a stern pointing-to from Venkat who had specifically wandered into Mission Control to make sure she was gone. A silently mouthed _‘Okay, okay’_ from across the room was her response as she packed the most sensitive material into her satchel and brashly logged out of her station. Just because she hadn’t left early in a while didn’t mean she appreciated being kicked out. 

It wasn’t a long journey in the cab, but with the sidewalks being questionable and the roads full of traffic at the end of a normal working day, she would rather pay to get there in one piece - although the nerves in her stomach questioned why. She made use of her time by checking and rechecking the time, and a couple of well angled tilts of her blank phone screen made sure the open driver’s window hadn’t blown her hair out of shape. She drew up at twenty past five, probably just within her time limit of ‘just after’, but something told Mindy she’d be forgiven if she was considered ‘late’. 

Pushing the glass door open with a brief swish, Mindy adjusted her glasses with the side of her hand that held her phone as she scanned the room. She noticed him immediately and that was before he raised his hand to show her where he was. He wasn’t noticeable in a visually descriptive way - he didn’t have any specific features like tattoos or unique hair. He was tall and he had got his muscle back since he returned to Earth with the aid of real food, but his short hair wasn’t particularly grabbing, nor was his gait or the way he held himself - it was something else. She couldn’t put her finger on it but it was more a feeling than something she could see. 

Wandering to the end of the bar, she found him sitting with his back to the rest of the shop which, for someone looking for contact, seemed out of place but she didn’t question it - just sat up beside him with mutual hellos, dumping her bag with a clout at her feet. 

“Kapoor got you luggin’ satellites? What’s in that?” Mark eyeing the lump at her feet had a laugh at his lips which settled her instantly.

“More just logs and projects I can’t just leave at my desk.” Another thing she found easy with Mark was that he would understand her work, or at least the necessity of it if not the fine details. 

“He’s got you workin’ too hard, I hope you got a raise after finding me.” Passing her a menu, there was still a joke in his tone but he did turn to look at her for an answer when she took the menu. 

“Well... I got a ‘dromotion’ - half promotion, half demotion.” She shifted in her seat, wriggling out her jacket that got dumped over her bag on the floor. “‘Watney Watch was less responsibility but more… involved." She explained, squinting as she explored it in her head. "I got to meet a lot of superiors while I was interpreting what you were doing, and people I would never have known were listening to me - which was great." Mindy assured, "I just thought they might’ve used the lack of responsibility in Watney Watch as an excuse for not giving me my old duties back, but they didn't.” And in saying that, she had already mentally claimed their cheque for the night. 

“A dromotion for Watney Watch…” Sounding it out, he nodded once as if in approval of her made up terms before he nudged her knee with his in a change of topic. “So, other than being the Earth-to-Mars Neighbourhood Watcher, who are you?” Her wide eyed look of uncertainty pushed him to explain. “You spent two years of your life babysitting me and I don’t know anything about you - you didn’t even come see me before now and I had to almost kidnap you from work to get you here.” 

Her confusion melted into guilty embarrassment as she bit her lip, thinking about her answer. “Well, they did give me a real promotion after Watney Watch, so I was busy…” Her statement sounded more like a question, as if she was fishing for excuses she didn’t have while at the same time managing to avoid talking about her past - she didn’t feel like being the centre of attention. She wanted to know _him_ , not talk about how she pales in comparison to the Martian Hero.

“Too busy to say hi to the guy you saved from Mars?” He asked, his eyes wide in faux disbelief - NASA worked their employees hard, but not that hard.

“Yes?” She thought about continuing the light tone but she was starting to feel like keeping her distance from Mark had been a bad idea - especially since it lead to this. “No.” She sighed, leaning further into the bar in front of her. “Honestly, I thought it would be weird to tell you that I spent all that time watching you like very determined paparazzi, so I thought I’d get away without you knowing.” 

“Mitch and Kapoor told me what everyone did by my third day back - they had to debrief me on every moment from start to finish and you were in there, too.” Mindy had a moment of sudden realisation as her head hit her hands - she had been putting this off for months and Mark knew all about it. 

“That’s why Kapoor said I should meet you after you’d only been back a week…” There was guilt in her tone as well as regret as she figured that Venkat and Mark must’ve had a chat about her months ago but since Venkat hadn’t been frank with her, she had waived the opportunity off. “I thought you’d be busy catching up family, friends or whatever, it was just… too soon for me to turn up.” 

“Well, my friends were on that ship and I didn’t have any ‘whatevers’ that were waiting on me other than my stressed out parents whose son came back from the dead _and_ space - which is definitely a first.” He glanced away from her to catch the barman’s eye to start their order. “The second of which wouldn’t have even happened without you, so, I think I owe you more than beers, but for now, that’s where I’m starting.” 

Despite Mark’s insisting, Mindy attempted to order a water on the premise she was working the next day, but Mark vocally disapproved, ordering them two shots over their two beers. “If Kapoor told you you deserved the night off, we’re making full use of it, okay? And that means beers.” 

“And shots, apparently.” She mentioned quietly as she watched them be poured. 

“And shots, which are repercussions for trying to order water when you’re out with me.” With the four drinks handed across the bar to them, Mark pushed the small glass of liquid toward Mindy before taking his own. “Alright, I gotta toast it first.” 

“Really?” She protested, knowing she’d probably be the one toasted to and that sort of gratitude just made her uncomfortable, especially when she didn’t think did enough to deserve it.

“Yes, really.” Imitating her tone briefly before bringing his attention back to the glass in his fingers, it didn’t take him long to think up what he wanted to say.

“Okay,” Raising the small glass, he swivelled in his chair to face her full on. “Mindy Park.” She met his gaze, his confidence overshadowing her uncertainty as he continued. “The girl I didn’t know was saving my ass - The girl I didn’t know I was talking to for almost two years, who had to guess what I was up to and read my shitty messages whenever I could be bothered writing them - who slept at the same time I did so she wouldn’t miss anything and learned morse code for me - thank you for getting me off that stupid fuckin’ rock.” Raising his glass a little higher as she did the same, he tipped his back and scrunched his face at the burn before he realised Mindy was still holding hers. 

“To Captain Blondebeard,” She started, her confidence was sitting in the glass in her hand but she managed to leach some courage from just looking at it. “Who survived the worst of Mars while relying on me to interpret his actions right so Nasa could figure out the rest, I’m glad I could do something.” 

Tipping her own glass back, she sucked in a breath to follow the fire as something of a rueful smirk touched Mark’s lips. 

“Captain Blondebeard, I remember that." His gaze shifted as he thought back, and Mindy had a minute feeling of wondrous awe that the man in front of her had memories of being on a different planet. "I realised the International Waters laws applied to Mars as I was reaching the AresIV site - called myself a space pirate for two weeks until the humour in that wore off.” Mindy had rested her head against a palm as she listened to Mark talk about his time there. There was still something surreal in the situation - meeting the man who was so dangerously far away for so long and not only meeting him, but having him within touching distance. Her gaze had fallen to his hands that were picking the label off his beer bottle and she couldn’t help but think of all the rocks he had laid out with those hands, the solar panels he had picked up and strewn across the sands so often, and all the things he disassembled out the MAV with those steady fingers and now they were centimetres from her own. 

Her wandering mind was pulled back to the present as they placed their food order - something Mindy questioned after the waitress had left. 

“I thought you said ‘beers’ - yakisoba and tuna rolls aren’t ‘beers’.” Adjusting her glasses with her finger to the bridge before curling a hand around her bottle.

“Yeah, don’t tell the rest of the staff or they might get jealous.” He raised his brows in suggestion as Mindy lowered hers in confusion as she tried to recall anyone mentioning going for dinner with Mark. “Or maybe I just didn’t want Captain Blondebeard’s First Mate to get drunk by seven and have Kapoor down my neck for you turnin' up tomorrow with a hangover.” A grin broke out over his lips and Mindy mirrored it, but something still had her lingering over his first answer. 

“I don’t get drunk that easily, y’know.” She had had her college days and although she might have been on the ‘nerdiest’ course she had mingled. 

“That sounds like a challenge - but go easy on me, I haven’t drank in four years.” Raising his hand over his heart to evoke sympathy, she sarcastically pouted her lip and tilted her head. 

“I’ll make sure you get in the taxi later.” She said, wondering where this small boost in confidence had come from - possibly the shot. 

“But, while I’m filling you with food and alcohol, there’s one thing I really wanna know that no one else can tell me - What did you see that showed you I was still alive?” The powerhouse of social energy that Mark was had visibly calmed. Even the subtle need to draw people into him had all but stopped as he muttered his question. A slight sorrow touched Mindy as Mark brought it up. It was so long ago but she’d still never forget it as Day 1 of the rescue mission, but also Day 1 of being so helpless where all she could do was watch. Mark went on when she didn’t answer immediately, but it gave her time to prepare her answer. “Everyone else has played different parts in the process and I love every single one of them, but they weren’t there on the day, or that first moment - except you, so, what’d you see, Mindy?” 

She took another brief moment to find her words and try to phrase it coherently. 

“Well, it was three things really - most obvious was the rover had moved 'cause Commander Lewis’ logs reported the rover to be attached the hab - I checked it four times in case I got it wrong or that a later entry suggested using the rover and not putting it back.” Mindy shrugged as they both knew there was no such entry in the Commander’s logs. “Then, the solar panels: it had been a while since the crew left and the panels should’ve been covered with dust...” Her brows creased briefly in thought as she cast her mind back. “But the panels were totally clean - it was weird, like it was staring right at me that you were still there but it took about half an hour of convincing Venkat while Annie swore like a sailor, but it ended well, as you know, I guess.” Her short reflection ended with a smile he returned. 

“You said three things - and I know you can count.” Snapping his chopsticks in clear impatience for his food, he gave her a look as if he knew what the third thing was, but still wanted to hear it. 

“Well.” Trying to think of a more polite way of framing it, she pushed condensation droplets from her bottle around the bar for a moment. “There were no ...anomalies in the dunes.” 

“Wow, you should go into media relations, even Annie would’ve been proud of that dodge.” She laughed at the idea of following in Annie’s footsteps, knowing only too well what Annie would think of the shy girl from SatCon having a career change to media.

“I think I should probably stay where I am since I don’t think Annie would find me easy to work with.” She shook her head at the thought of following Annie around and learning the ropes from her - as if she wouldn’t get tongue tied and stutter and stumble over her words the moment she met someone new. Not everyone would be as instantly agreeable as Mark. 

“No way,” Mark disregarded her humble decline of a career change. “You could’ve been like ‘Well, Mark, your frozen corpse wasn’t bobbing about the sand, so that was a good clue’, but you didn’t!” She looked unsure whether or not she could laugh at something so image-evoking, but at the break of his smirk she laughed behind her hand as if she might be caught for it. 

She was aware of his psych reports, after all, files of all sorts had been gathered on her desk throughout the rescue mission. Venkat thought that the more she knew about Mark, the more likely she would be to predict what he was up to. It also meant that on slow days her reading was the Mark Watney Biography. For now, however, what was coming to mind was the note on his third psychological evaluation, ‘Uses humour to deflect.’.

“Maybe, but I still don’t think I’m up to Annie standards, she’s pretty amazing.” Mindy knew that Annie was a force to be reckoned with, the way she delivered messages to hungry press, appeared on news shows all over the country and looked amazing while flying back and forth - she was like a storm the way she thundered through her days and she had the language to back it up. 

“Yeah, I have no idea how she got the world to rally up to get back to Mars and help me, she really laid it on thick in those reports.” Pausing to take a sip of beer, Mindy tilted her head as she thought about what he said. 

“They sent you the reports when you were on the Hermes?” She was a little surprised. Why would he want to see how hard the world tried for him when he was still months and months away of doing anything about it? Or maybe that was unfair of her - maybe they wanted to make sure he wasn’t depressed… She debated internally as Mark sipped his beer. 

“No, even if they did, Commander Lewis didn’t think it was good idea to ‘overwhelm me’ just yet.” Pausing to let the waitress drop their food with a small ‘thanks’, he swirled his noodles around in the bowl before continuing. “I’ve been watching them online since most of them are on there, I just put in my name and there’s thousands of videos just sittin’ there." Mark emphasised his surprise with his hands. "Before I left for Mars all I got for searching myself was a reminder I did Botany at college - but now? Everything is there as if I’m a real celebrity, I mean, there's whole articles on whether or not I’m with real celebrities I’ve never even met!” He looked almost proud of the lies they were spinning about him. “I always knew there’d be at least something on CNN or NBC about it, but I didn’t really expect it to go international at such a level, but every station has something on me - for getting lost on Mars.” 

“You watch them when you wake on Mars time, right?” A bit of knowing in her tone, she knew what distracting herself was like until she found it acceptable to be up and about. Her insight surprised Mark for a second before he nodded in admittance. 

“It’s only a few hours, but you just feel…” Mark, for the first time that night, was a little lost for words.

“Disorientated, and you get told it’ll go away eventually - like time difference when you go to another country, but it’s not like that.” Mindy ended his sentence for him. 

“Yeah, like you gotta wait until it’s a reasonable time on Earth before you can start your day, even if you’re lying there wide awake.” He glanced towards her as she nodded in agreement - something he hadn’t found in anyone else. Even his parents had told him he’d ‘grow out of it’ like it was a bad fashion trend. 

“Still, it’s nice seeing the sun rise - and I guess it’s nice for you to have the reassurance of where you really are.” She paused, thinking about the most recent sun rise she sat and watched with her morning coffee, wondering if he had seen it too. She met his light gaze with the thought on her mind, but didn’t bring it up, realising she might have over stepped.

“Yeah, it grounds you.” Although Mark’s quiet response was worded impersonally, it left no doubt that he spent his mornings watching the sun like she did, telling himself that the view he had was from Earth with his feet on the ground and air in his lungs. 

The rest of the night was spent on a lighter note. Conversations touched on other staff, messages he wrote, space-related interests and then, finally, how she was physically unable to keep a plant alive for more than four days. Mark had promised that by this time next week she would have a living, healthy plant in her apartment or he couldn’t call himself the Best Botanist On The Mars. 

Eventually, at twenty to eleven, they were asked to leave by way of the staff switching off some of the lights behind them. They hadn’t realised they were the last two in the bar, but it was a Tuesday night and most normal people had work the next day, including Mindy. But Mark had ample time off to “recover” as Mindy had found out and she wholeheartedly agreed he both needed it and deserved it. Unfortunately, she had nothing to recover from (except, perhaps, being a little bit more than tipsy) and was due at work in almost eight hours. 

Mark had given her another hug outside the restaurant, one that she was far more prepared for this time and returned it without the shock. He tried to thank her again, for everything she had done for him, but she tried to shrug it off. 

“No, listen, you saved my life - no amount of beers or shots can cover that - sure there were other people involved, but, Mindy, you were the first girl on the scene, it started with you, _you_ did it.” She had nothing to say to his sincere gaze, but instead just nodded, knowing she’d never win against his thinking. “Next week I’m inviting the managers and higher up’s out - like Kapoor, Mitch, Annie, Bruce - Rich, too, and I think you should come.” 

“No, I couldn’t with the managers-” The mere idea of going out somewhere with all the people above her made her stomach flip, which, after the amount she had drank, was not smart. But with barely a push from Mark, she reluctantly agreed before tipping herself into her taxi, shouting thanks from the window for the drinks and the food that he hadn’t let her contribute to. 

She didn’t get home until after eleven and when she flicked on a few lights, tossed her bag behind her door, she only had the energy to flop to her couch and lie there in a slightly drunken heap for a few moments, digesting her night. 

It had been completely unexpected in every way. She had spent three months avoiding the man she ended up out for dinner with. Not only that, it was one of the better nights she had had since moving to Houston in the first place. She had found a great ease being with him and for someone who was often shy or anxious at something, feeling comfortable was a rare luxury. More than that, however, she had found the only other person who understood her trouble sleeping with perfect empathy, and she supposed, more importantly, he did too. 


	3. Chapter 3

Wednesday morning was met with brief panic after sleeping through her first two alarms and her cat pawing at her hair, but with a quick shower and her hair dried Mindy was back on time. She didn’t feel too hungover but there was a small din at her temple that wasn’t shifting with her coffee. It was the only sign beyond the small smile at her lips that she had enjoyed the night before.

Mindy's work day consisted of pointing satellites towards Olympus Mons, analysing for signs of life in the immense volcano. She had managed to work well beyond her shift hours, undisturbed, before she packed up and left. Pulling her jacket over her shoulders and fixing stubborn folders in her bag almost had her walking straight into Venkat on her way out.

“Leaving early?” He asked, his brows raised and his tone told her he was being sarcastic, but there was still a flash of worry that maybe she should’ve spent another hour or two at her desk. “Mindy, I’m kidding, you overwork yourself, I couldn’t tell you to stay longer.”

He held the door open for her as they stepped out into the mild night, his briefcase playing at a door stop.

“Where’s your car?” He asked, peering into the vast but now considerably empty parking lot ahead of them.

“Washington state.” She answered with a smirk. “My car’s still at my mom’s and I haven’t saved enough from my move and everything to get another car - but it’s coming.” She only had another paycheck to go and she’d be at her target for a small eco-friendly Toyota to get her from A to B. “In the meantime the local taxi service have been getting the rest of my salary.” She nodded towards the faint headlights in the distance, assuming that that would be her pre-ordered taxi as it worked it’s way through the lanes and one-way systems of the grounds.

“I would’ve given you a ride, Mindy, you don’t stay far, right?” Venkat had his keys in his hand and had already stepped to the side as her taxi drew closer.

“Mm.” She mused, squinting her eyes and tilting her head. “Depends on the traffic. Sometimes forty minutes, sometimes an hour.”

“Next time then - I wanted to ask you how your night went last night, but you made it in this morning so I guess it wasn’t all that great.” He pouted in fake sympathy for a poor night and Mindy's response was to roll her eyes and be grateful it was dark to hide the small blush she felt appear.

“It was fine-” She didn’t have time to elaborate before he cut in.

“I knew it would be, you’re just a worrier - did he get you that beer he promised?” His glasses had slipped a little down his nose and he peered over the top of his frames, making Mindy feel like he was more some protective professor at her university than he was her boss.

“Yes, he did.” Mindy conceded, knowing the fuss she put up in the first place over even the idea of meeting with Mark, never mind getting dinner with him. “And shots, then dinner.”

“Dinner?” Venkat didn’t need to raise his voice over the thick diesel engine of the taxi at the kerb for Mindy to understand what he was insinuating. “That’s interesting, he didn't buy us dinner.”

“It’s not interesting, it was a noodle bar, it was dinnertime for normal people and he said he didn’t want you to get annoyed at him for me being hungover today.” Her appeal to him to drop his tone didn’t appease the glint in Venkat’s eye but with another urging roll of Mindy’s eyes as she went for the door of the taxi she knew she needed him to accept it hadn’t been anything ‘interesting’ or she wouldn’t get a wink of sleep tonight. “Really, it wasn’t anything - it was just normal, okay?”

It took Venkat a moment and a nudge from the driver before he nodded and shrugged. “Okay, it was ‘normal’, totally ‘normal’ - especially since he took us to whole other bar, didn't get us food or get us thrown out at closing.” He had wandered away with a grin on his face as Mindy rested her head against the roof of the cab.

“Wait, how did you know we left at closing?” Lifting her head with her brows dipped, sure she didn't tell him that.

“You just told me, Mindy.” She knew he was just trying to play her but she also knew all of this would now stick on her mind as she groaned aloud as Venkat laughed. “He let us get rounds too, just sayin’.”

Mindy made a face, pleading with him to stop as the driver urged her again to get in - that she was only wasting her own money - and eventually, after Venkat was practically half-way across the parking lot, she slid in. Spending the rest of the journey with her phone at her lips, she worried the rubber case between her teeth like she often did when her mind was far away and her hands needed something to busy themselves with. Mindy wanted to believe it meant nothing, he was just saying thanks to who he thought was the first domino falling to push the others in his rescue, but at the same time, if it had been something, she wanted to deny it, deny any chance of it happening because she didn’t feel like she deserved it or that it should happen to her of all people. Either way, she was happy to admit that Venkat was in her bad books for playing on her anxieties like this.

She was right in one thought though; she didn’t get a wink of sleep that night. She had over analysed her whole night with Watney to death, reimagining each part of the conversation as best she could remember it, every wayward glance that she had told herself was just her memory acting up and finally, when she was too exhausted to carry on, her eyes did shut… to open only three hours later on Mars Time.

She lay there for another hour, hoping that she could will herself to sleep with the help of her phone and some very boring emails and news articles. With no such luck she got up to the disdain of her cat who was more than comfortable in the warm crook of her knees. But even with much meowing and pawing from Avocado, Mindy didn’t return to her bed but instead wandered to her kitchen for coffee and flicked on her laptop for a dose of that morning’s news - some of which she had already read. With her mug full of coffee and her laptop in her hand, she made her way to her couch, finding comfort in the cushioned corner to stretch herself along it. Aiming her vision out the window in wait for the sunrise, she didn’t want it to cross her mind in wonder if Mark was doing the same.

Avocado joined her by her feet, curling up in the hope that Mindy would stop moving long enough for a catnap. With the first few rays of orange trickling through some clouds, she had already worked her way through two different news websites, the few social media pages she had and even one or two of the international videos on Mark’s rescue he had mentioned. She had mostly only ever seen the American ones on the news channels she had flicked between but it really was overwhelming to find the story repeated over and over in different accents and languages truly across the world. Space exploration brought people together as did daring rescue missions - the two together were so cohesive that even the smallest news channel in the smallest country had something on him. He was arguably the most famous person on Earth right now and he had taken her out for drinks. And dinner. She crossed off the video stream before her thought process went much further and focused on the rising sun instead.

Thursday ran through without any disruptions or disturbances and when Mindy left at her usual late hour she was by herself at the door, no Venkat to be seen. She was thankful for that since by that afternoon she had finally made peace with Venkat’s teasing and the night out. It was, of course, completely innocent. Mark had wanted to say thanks and she had been very, very late to the thank you party. Above that, he knew most of the other people he was thanking since he had been working with them for years before he went to Mars. He had taken her somewhere else because he had no idea who she was - why take her to a noisy bar to get to know who she was? It made sense now. It wasn’t interesting, it was normal. Mark just wanted to say thanks and he probably wouldn’t bring up the other night out he planned again, in fact, Mindy was starting to believe she’d probably not see him again for months.

It was mid-afternoon on Friday and SatCon was only half full. Most of the desks were empty with the NASA logo playing on vacant computer screens. She had her eyes on the large screens above her desk, switching between different satellite feeds and recording their findings, documenting their positions and timings along with all the other details she needed for her project on the volcanoes of Mars. She had been so taken by her work at hand that she didn’t hear the door open or close behind her, nor the first call of her name.

“Mindy?” Eventually it cut through and she turned, startled.

“Mark!” Her shock had her barking his name at him as she balked. “I was just-”

“Working very intensely, I can see why they keep you around.” He nodded towards all the open folders and sheets of paper, diagrams and graphs lying around her desk and even around her chair. She really had been lost in her work.

“Can I do something for you? Want me to point the satellites at AresIII?” She started to smirk but at the slight stiffness in the grin he returned she instantly regretted her comment, her gaze fell with guilt.

“I think I’ve seen enough of that site for now, but I have a thing with Venkat in a bit, so I just-”

“About next week?” She didn’t mean to butt in, but there was a slight hope building up for his next outing to be cancelled. Not out of rudeness, but just because the company at Mark’s next get-together was starting to scare her.

“No, everything’s still fine for next week, so stop hoping it gets called off.” He stepped to her side to lean on the top of her computer as her heart steadied. “I’m here ‘cause I promised you something.”

She started to shake her head in askance, not quite sure about what he was referring to until he dumped a clear plastic bag of what looked like mud onto her desk.

“...Dirt?” She met his gaze with pushed up brows, heavily confused - what was she supposed to do with a bag of dirt? “Do you want me to… get rid of it for you?” There was a small smile at her lips but she really was at a loss.

“No, Jesus, don’t do that - that soil is really rich, okay? I told you I’d get you a healthy, living plant in your apartment before the week’s out but instead of giving you one that’s already grown, I thought you’d do better growing one yourself.” Passing her a small packet of seeds, her confusion switched to alarm.

“I was being really serious when I said I kill every plant I look at - my entire family couldn’t conjure a green finger between them!” Her bright eyes went to look at the dainty packet of seeds in her hand and suddenly she felt too irresponsible for seedlings. “I can’t grow plants, Mark, don’t make me kill these seeds.”

These poor seeds. She was holding the packet lightly by the far corners, careful not to squeeze a seed between her fingers and hurt it. There must have only been about five in the packet but it all felt too much for her. At least a cat can look after itself most of the time - but seeds need constant care, and she was sure she read somewhere you have to talk to them, too. More than that, these seeds were hand delivered by Mark Watney who is the best botanist on the planet, probably, and he was the last person she wanted to disappoint.

“They’re just seeds - they practically grow themselves, okay? You only need to do a couple of things-” Clearly the idea of a to-do list seemed too much for Mindy, so he changed his tactic with a short sigh. “I’ll write it down for you.”

She quickly grabbed the nearest piece of recently printed out data and passed him her pen. She watched as his lithe fingers scrawled out a numbered list in his disjointed but distinct writing. Despite the note now in her hands, the small list of instructions and a simple but fully blossoming doodle of a flower, she was still looking at the dirt and seeds in front of her with panic.

“What if I gave you my number and you can text me when you think you’ve killed them?” She hadn’t been as opaque in her panic as she had thought but now it had turned quite visible as she tried to fight his offer - she shouldn’t need taken by the hand to grow a plant.

“No, really, I’ll manage, you don’t need to do that-” But his hand was already stretching to take the pen from her desk again.

“Take it, I’ll message you when you should water them, too, okay?” His numbers were a little sloppier than his previous instructions and writing his first name under it had been unnecessary, but possibly made it one of the most valuable pieces of paper in NASA right now, not that it crossed her mind to sell it - maybe just frame it.

“When you get home, follow that note and then text me to let me know the seeds have been ‘buried’.” He shrugged off the instructions as easy while she tried to absorb it for later. She nodded but she was still worried about doing it wrong - these seeds had no idea what was about to hit them. “I’ll tell you when you should be watering them and you will not kill them.” His gaze had settled on hers and with such intensity she started to believed that these seeds might stand a chance against her, so long as he was there to guide her.

“What if I put the seeds in upside down-”

“Not possible.”

“Do I have to talk to them? I heard you had to talk to them.”

“Not unless you’re crazy.”

Mindy sighed, exhausting the stupid questions on her mind and finally accepted that she was really going to try and grow a plant. His simple reassurances did help, and now that she had him as an emergency contact for these tiny seeds, she actually felt a little more secure. Throwing her head back against her chair, she dropped the seeds on her desk and conceded defeat.

“If I kill these, even with your help, I get to say ‘I told you so’.” She toyed, but her tone was serious. She had warned him about her inability but he pushed her regardless, and she wasn’t taking responsibility for that.

“Fine, fine, tell the world the best botanist of Mars killed your plants - you can even tell everyone on Thursday how terrible a botanist I am.” Thursday. He wasn’t going to let her forget about it. Since Mindy was naturally shy, naturally anxious and naturally socially quiet, this new stream of outings and gatherings was already starting to weigh on her - and now she had a plant to grow, too. It wasn’t Mark that was the issue, it was the idea of a group of people she had only dealt with in meetings and in an official capacity being around her at a social event. Mindy knew she couldn’t say no, but at least she was comfortable with Venkat, she could stick with him.

“Where is it? You never said.” In fact, other than who was going, she didn’t actually know much about the event at all.

“Haven’t decided yet, but I’ll let you know.” He shook his phone in reference to the numbers they swapped, gaining himself a small smile and nod from Mindy as he started to step away. “I’m actually kinda late for my meeting though with Kapoor and Teddy - about some official thing I’ve to attend - so I’ll see you later, remember, just over halfway, seeds, soil, windowsill, done.”

Mindy watched him leave and was very aware of the interested eyes from the few staff members who were blatant enough to stare at her station. Sinking down into her chair, she clicked a few things on her computer to try and distract herself from the onlookers but found them too obvious to ignore. Grabbing her phone from her bag and the paper he wrote his number on, she left her desk and hopped over the papers at her feet to visit the kitchen for a much deserved coffee break. Finding herself an unassuming seat against the wall near the far end of the communal space, she unlocked her phone and clung to the warm mug. As her thumb slid over the screen to add the newly acquired number, she found it unexpectedly difficult. It seemed like a breach of privacy to have his number sitting there, ready to use whenever she wanted when the entire world were chasing after him for comments following his return. How many people would kill for his number and here it was sitting in her phone. Mindy knew how easily she could work herself up over whether or not she was using it too much or too little or even if he really wanted her to use it at all. Instead of losing herself in her worries, she simply typed “Mark” and added a small emoji of the breaching seedling beside his name before saving it to her phone. Before she lost her nerve, she typed out a quick text and sent it off to give him her number in return for his, hoping 'Hey, it's Mindy, thought I better give you my number too. Thanks for the seeds.' would do.

By the time she had convinced herself back to her desk, everyone else had re-focussed on their own work and without any more surprising interruptions, she had her head down and pulled out a few more clear images for her project. Since it was generally agreed that Mons Olympus last erupted in the 20th Century, her aim was to find whether or not there was any visual clues to another eruption any time soon. The rovers were doing enough work on the surface, but Satellites were, thus far, the only way to get a real view of the monstrous volcano. It was approaching nine when her phone beeped again, giving her a small start before she reached for it.

Before she unlocked it, she assumed it to be her mom. They hadn’t spoken yet this week beyond the small texts here and there when they usually attempt to call once a day, but with Mindy’s ridiculous shifts she puts herself through that daily aim had gone more than askew. She had already mentally prepared herself for a telling off for not calling when the small seedling emoji caught her eye.

[20:46:32]  
hows the seeds? killed  
them yet?

Now came the panic of when to text back - immediately? In a minute? When she was finished her work? She closed her eyes for a second, getting herself under control and let her thumbs run across her screen.

[20:48:18]  
I’m still at satcon.  
They’re not in their  
grave. Yet

She appreciated what he was doing. He had obviously noticed her worry over the seeds wasn’t superficial and she really was scared in case she killed yet another green thing. Mindy wondered if he had picked up on the fact that the main source of her stressing came from his own credentials. Hand delivered seeds from Mark Watney meant the stakes were a lot higher than a small potted leafy thing from entrance of the local Foodarama.

[20:50:12]  
still? no wonder  
venkat told you  
you needed a night  
out.

She had nothing to say to that. Even if he had said that to her in person she probably would’ve awkwardly smiled and shrugged which was something she wasn’t sure how to put into text format. Instead of worrying about a reply she put her phone on silent and face-down on her desk, trying to tell herself that she was finishing to the next three images and then leaving for the night. She ended up leaving a few minutes earlier than usual, despite getting her estimated load of work down. She didn't want to tell herself it was because she was worried about the seeds being left out of their soil too long (even though she knew that was nonsense), but she still felt as if it was urgent that she got home as she climbed into her taxi.

Met with a proud Avocado sitting on her kitchen counter, she dumped her bag of soil in front of him for investigation when she got home. Immediately, she went fishing through her cupboards for something with ‘drainage’ as noted. Mindy had almost given up when her nails hit something plastic and round in the very back, dark corner. It could only be described as a miracle finding real plant pots in the back of her utility closet that she absolutely did not remember buying, which had her assuming they were here before she was.

Laying out a pot, the soil and the packet of seeds in front of her and Avocado, she pat him mindlessly as she inspected the three things and her instructions.

“Alright, just, put the soil in the pot almost half way - no, over half way - and then… seeds.” They were just seeds, but the thought of lining them up to die was filling her with enough dread to have her head in her hands. An encouraging meow from her left pushed her to get it over with as she unfurled the knot in the bag of soil and dumped almost all of it into the pot.

“I’m so sorry,” She muttered to the seeds she picked up, tearing the edge of the packet and pouring them into her hand. “You would’ve been safer with Mark.” Fingering through them, she realised that with their conical shape it would be best to assume to plant them with the pointy bits up, even though Mark said it wouldn’t matter if she planted them wrong. Covering the small seeds with the rest of the soil, she stood back and admired her very simple work. If they were going to die, at least the soil sort of smelled nice, it would make people think she was better at keeping plants than she really was… although it wasn’t like many people visited her flat in the first place.

Cautiously picking up the pot, Mindy placed it gingerly on the windowsill where it would get the full rays of the sunrise and the light from the rest of the day. Still, she had the feeling that she hadn’t done something right and continued to twist the pot at different angles before considering moving it to a different sill all together. It all came to a halt when she decided to give up - if they were going to die, they were going to die, there was nothing she, Mark or anyone else could do about it now: they were in their grave.

Even while she made herself something to eat, her gaze slid sideways towards the pot on the sill, making sure nothing terrible had came its way - apart from herself. It wasn’t until almost ten did she remember she hadn’t called her mom yet and she made her way to her phone. With one missed call and two unread messages, she knew that if she was still within the reaches of her mom, she would be grounded.

Sure enough, the missed call and one of the messages was from her mom, but the other was from Mark two hours ago, asking her to let him know when the seeds were in their ‘grave’. Deciding he could wait a little longer until she had her telling off from her mom, she called her and barely waited a single ring before she picked up.

“Mindy Park!” Her mom, obviously annoyed at her lack of communication - it was to be expected since she was hundreds of miles away.

“I know,” Mindy mewed, apologetic.

“Where have you been? Work? Honestly, if I didn’t know who you were I’d think you were lying to me.” Her mom was not shy to complain about Mindy’s work habits, but without the ethic (or the lack of progressive social skills), Mindy wouldn’t be at NASA. Their conversation worked through all the days they had missed real contact from, telling her mom about some of her latest projects, about how Avocado was getting on (‘I still can’t believe you called him that, Mindy’), and finally getting round to tell her that she had eventually met with Mark. She got told off again for not leading with that information but when her mom quickly launched into a plethora of questions about him and their meeting, Mindy found herself clamming up. She didn’t usually not tell her mom things about her life in Houston, but her answers were stilted - ‘yes, no, taller than me, why would I get a picture? That’s weird, mom’ - and she wasn’t sure why she kept the fact that their full meeting didn’t take place in work until her mom specifically asked “and this all happened at work?”, but after spending all that time watching him from afar, she didn’t enjoy giving details about him away. Even to her mom, but only because she knew fine well that the next time her mom saw any of her neighbours, she’d be telling them everything.

“It was just to a local place, he wanted to say thanks for helping with the rescue.” Mindy was thankful she had found her peace with their night out since she sounded confident, even to herself, that that was all the night was.

“Have you seen him since?” Mindy could tell her mom was on the hunt for details with the faux-innocence in her tone but with her newly found confidence, Mindy indulged her.

“Yeah, he stopped by my desk today after I told him I can’t grow anything to give me soil and seeds. He said it’s easy, but I told him that there’s no green fingers in our family, but he insisted.” The phone went quiet for a second, her mom absorbing everything she heard, but Mindy’s nonchalant tone was strongly consistent.

“What type of seeds did he give you, honey?” Her first answer was a noise of uncertainty as she got up to find the torn packet she had left on her counter.

“I dunno, there’s no details on the packet… I’ll ask him-”

“You’ll see him again soon?” The hunger in that question was starting to make Mindy feel agitated. Her mom was well known for grasping at straws when Mindy found new friends, even from a young age.

“No, I don’t know - if I do, I’ll ask, okay?” The investigative technique from her mom had trained Mindy well enough to tell the truth but also keep some of the more valuable details to yourself - like how she was about to text him after this call and ask exactly what type of seeds she had just planted.

“Okay, okay. I hope you’re not drinking too much coffee, you keep saying you have coffee breaks - you know it’s not good for you, Mindy, especially if you’re still not sleeping right…” Mindy was barely a part of the conversation for the next ten minutes as her mom ranted and raved about the health benefits of tea over coffee before moving on to scandalous stories about the neighbours. She did miss her mom, and the stories of the neighbours were enough to keep a smile on her face and make her laugh, but she could tell her mom was lonely or at least missed her more than she let on. Any detail Mindy let slip about her life her mom clung to, remembering to ask about any people she had ever mentioned, even if Mindy had only spoke to them once or twice. She didn’t really mind it. Being quizzed on all the conversations she had during the day was always tiring, yet Mindy always found comfort in the conversations. It gave her a chance to objectively look at her days, and while she had already made peace with her night with Mark, it gave her an extra dose of confidence to fully conclude that they were just very new friends.

The indecision Mindy might have felt before texting Mark almost two hours after he had last text her had disappeared after the conversation with her mother. It was barely a minute after she hung up from her mom that her fingers ran across the screen to reply to Mark.

[22:03:46]   
They’re in the dirt.  
And when I say   
‘they’ I actually don’t  
know what ‘they’   
are? What did I  
plant?

With her phone on the small basic coffee table she turned her attention to the night news, assuming she probably wouldn’t be text back until the morning. She had lost herself in the reports of economies and unemployment rates when her phone lit up, exclaiming a reply.

[22:08:34]  
not telling. you’ll  
find out when  
they grow up.

[22:08:56]  
It’s not for me,  
my mom wants  
to know.

[22:09:36]  
oh well in that  
case it’s definitely  
the strongest  
marijuana i know of.

[22:10:21]  
Please?

[22:10:13]  
remember to water  
your weed plant  
first thing  
tomorrow, first  
matey.

[22:11:01]  
How much should  
i water it, captain?

[22:11:29]  
enough to keep  
the soil damp.  
don’t drown them,  
they don’t need  
a swim.

[22:11:53]  
Alright, no  
swimming.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I keep writing more so I guess I'll keep posting until I get told to stop or I'm finished. sorry chp3 is as long as chap1+2 combined, but i didn't know where to split it... so i didn't. ¯\\_(ツ)_/¯


	4. Chapter 4

[22:11:53]  
Alright, no swimming.

Mark put his phone down on his parent’s kitchen counter, leaving Mindy’s plant in her hands for the night, and tended to his own Solanum Watneyi by sprinkling it with just enough water to dampen the soil. There was still something a little surreal to have a plant growing in his (parent’s) house that had been generously named after him - especially one as striking as this. It’s ghostly purple petals and luminous yellow centre were impressive enough without the white tomatoes growing, too. It was a beautiful specimen and it took it’s place on the kitchen window sill with pride. Mindy, however, would have to wait a bit longer before she got to see what she had planted. Still, even when it did bloom, he couldn’t help but imagine the trouble she’d have identifying it, it wasn’t exactly distinct. In saying that, Mark couldn’t have loved it more. It was perfectly appreciated on his end and the botanist who named it after him was thanked profusely in many back-and-forth emails over the past few weeks. Watering it each morning brought a smile to his face - watering his own plant. Almost made getting lost on Mars worth it. Almost.

Mark had realised only after the most recent text-exchange that Solanum Watneyi (or the 'to-Mark-o plant’) and Mindy both came into his life on a terrible afternoon and both made it a much better day. He had realised that for one, there had been someone watching him that entire time, someone with an eye on him, someone who, in a way, was with him on Mars when he thought no one was. And, for another, that it wasn’t just the blaring story that caught the attention of the folks back home, but his botany efforts had made waves in his field. Both of these warmed a small smile on his lips as he sat at the breakfast bar flicking through that day’s paper his dad had left lying. Glazing the headlines, Mark's mind had drifted back to the afternoon of his debrief on his return to Earth.

The psychologist had went on to ask about how Mark was feeling about being back, how he felt about his parents and living with them again before going on to try some exercises to control his breathing and have him relax. After a while, the psychologist suggested that he needed some rest and further relaxation but he was well enough to go through a debrief. Mark was sure the psychologist didn’t mean to be threatening when he said he would ‘see him again later’, but it felt that way as Mark waved him off.

The next two people in the darkly furnished but brightly lit room were Mitch and Venkat who Mark was glad to see.

“Man, these NASA doctors are seriously serious - I couldn’t get him to crack a laugh the whole time.” Mark grinned as Mitch gestured in agreement at his observation, still glad to see a familiar and warm face.

“Well, they’re here to do their job and we need ‘em serious.” Venkat added as they sat down opposite Mark slapping down thick folders with escaping papers.

“So, is this my super official five-hour long debrief?” Despite having all that to look forward to, he was still pleased to somehow have managed to get himself in with Mitch and Venkat, even when it meant the rest of the crew were in with strangers or people they only vaguely knew.

“Yep, so we better get cracking otherwise we’ll be here for the rest of the week,” Mitch opened his laptop in front of himself, “We also have some experts waiting to chime in when needed, too.”

“Experts on what?”

“Your favourite subject-”

“Oh, Jesus, not the fucking botanists.” Mark’s head rolled back in contempt. The botanists that had been picked up by NASA and suggested by ESA had been loudly complained about by Mark, often directly to the botanists themselves. Mark had now wrongly assumed that after touching down on Earth he’d be free from having to check in with them and listen to their ‘ideas’.

“Yes, it’s the ‘fucking’ botanists’.” Mitch sadly assured him.

“Alright, alright, let’s get started - can’t let those fucking botanists wait all day.”

By the time they had covered from liftoff to Sol 6, Mark had almost fallen asleep twice. It had taken a full hour and a half to reach this far, but, finally he could add more input than they could to the debrief. He caught them up from waking up in the sand, sewing himself up, wondering about his rations and HAB equipment before they had to start Skyping botanists. While trying to explain exactly what he had done, he tried to remain polite but every now and then he barely caught himself from sighing, rolling his eyes and telling them to just ‘shut up for a sec and listen, okay?’. Plus, the lag on Skype was torturous - not even NASA could bypass that.

Eventually, the sols started to climb and Mark was halfway through explaining the first of the modifications on the rovers to coincide with Mitch and Venkat’s report when he stopped.

“Wait-” Mitch and Venkat looked up from writing, typing and flicking pages as Mark’s monotonous retelling of his modifications abruptly changed.

“What?” Mitch asked first before Venkat. “Miss something?”

“No, but by this point you guys had already seen me, right?” Mark, his mind working as he spoke. “But you never said how that happened just ‘satellites found me’, but someone has to point the satellites.”

“Oh, right, uh, Mindy Park raised the alarm.” Venkat said with a smile, thinking of how she really deserved the break the AresIII staff were on right now.

“She raised the alarm? Like, she found me first?” Mark asked, a little incredulous.

“Yeah, why?” Venkat asked, wondering if he was missing something.

“That’s… that’s pretty fucking important, why didn’t you tell me this? Is she here?” Mark started, his gaze flicking to the door, surely someone that important - the woman who managed to get him back to Earth was probably in the building and no one had even told him.

“She’s not here today, she’ll be in tomorrow - she got the weekend off with the rest of the AresIII staff, so it’s just Mitch and I, really.” Venkat explained, a little surprised by the volition Mark had showed.

“I wanna talk to her - soon.” Mark pressured, knowing that he was in this Mindy Park’s debt and would probably never be out of it, but for now the least he could do would be to say thank you. “She found me, so, I wanna thank her.”

“That’s, uh, not the end of Mindy’s involvement, Mark.” Venkat glanced at Mitch, obviously wondering if they should stop the linear progression of the retelling and debrief to explain exactly what Mindy had done for Mark.

“What’d’you mean?” Looking between Mitch and Venkat, he kicked their shoes under the table to get them talking. “Tell me.”

“Well,” Venkat started, “She was watching you all day, every day - that was her role after she found you, to interpret what you were doing next.”

“But, the time difference-” Mark started, shaking his head as he knew she couldn’t have done this without a shift partner.

“Yeah, she went home to sleep when you went back to the HAB or into the rover, then came back in when you got up.” Venkat rolled his hand through the air, still trying to paw off the details and get back to the important part.

“What?! Are you kidding me?” So his rescuer was also watching over him that whole time, trying to figure out what he was up to. He sat up straighter, barely believing that one woman had been behind all of this and he didn’t even know.

“She was the one reading all your morse code, too.” Venkat explained further.

“Well, I take it then that she _could_ read it? ‘Cause learning it was a dick.” Mark stopped at the expression that washed over Venkat and he knew immediately she had learned the code too. “You’re fucking kidding me, Kapoor.”

Mark found himself almost a little overwhelmed at the idea of someone really putting themselves that far out of the way to help him. Sleeping when he was just to be sure that when he got up, she could see what he was doing, predict where he was going to make sure NASA knew, to make sure that any supply runs or escape plans were on time and running right. Mindy Park, who he had never even seen or heard of until now had probably put much of her life on hold to keep an eye on him for two whole years. And she was only mentioned because he had asked.

“Jesus, she did all this and you weren’t gonna mention her?” Maybe it was all his years at college getting told about not taking credit for other’s work, but there was a little bit more anger in his tone than even he had been expecting.

“Well, she wasn’t really primarily involved, Mark, like she wasn’t head of anything.” Mitch said quietly, but somehow managed to get Mark more heated.

“Jesus Christ - a regular employee found me when you all thought I’d _died_ and you were gonna rush over her? And what do you mean ‘not primarily involved’? She was the _first_ one involved! She is the fucking primary!”

“Mark, no, she has her name on the staff list of those involved in finding you, she wasn’t ignored.” Venkat had become fond of Mindy, he’d maybe even class himself and her as work-friends. She seemed comfortable enough around him to joke and seemed happy enough at her work - which she was very good at. Venkat didn’t purposefully preclude her.

“Whatever, listen, you gotta let me meet her.” With a nod in agreement from both Venkat and Mitch, he settled again. “Anyone else hidden away?”

“No, she was the only one.” Venkat sighed, bending to Mark’s tone before pointing towards the file they were barely a quarter of the way through. “Can we go back to this?”

Following the debrief that didn’t finish until late into the evening, Mark was preparing for a night in one of the isolation rooms he had been placed in before his mission began, although only for one night instead of ten this time. Before he had the door shut behind him, Mitch appeared with files in hand.

“You joining me?”

“No, no, I’m on my way out, but I wanted to give you this - some reading, if you get bored.” Handing Mark a few files and what looked like a journal article that he almost rolled his eyes at before a few words caught his eye.

“Watneyi… what’s this?” Peeling the article out the folder it was put in, Mark briefly read the title and the lines of the abstract. “They name a plant after me?”

“Yeah, it’s a bush tomato - grows in red soil, like Mars, sort of.” Mitch gave him a pat on the shoulder while Mark read deeper, but he was clearly touched.

“It’s from the potato family, and they named it after me ‘cause all I had were potatoes…” He let out a small laugh and gave Mitch a warm smile. “Thanks, Mitch, I’ll give this a good read.”

He didn’t want to tell anyone he might’ve shed a tear over having a plant named after him, but he had been a little emotional. A whole plant in the North-Western territory of Australia had been named after him and it was named for him _after_ they found him alive and got him back on board the Hermes so it wasn’t even a memorial plant, it was just in recognition of his efforts in the field. He hadn’t noticed until a few hours later when he attempted to put the article back into the folder to protect it that there was a little bag of fifteen or so seeds in the corner.

Mark woke from his day dream, finding himself staring at the local obituaries section of the paper in his parent's kitchen. Since it was now passing eleven, Mark was ready for bed as his eyes started to slide shut. It felt like a glimmer of hope that he might actually sleep tonight. He had flicked the rest of the newspaper over and headed up to the spare room he had yet to leave after three full months of being kept in his parent’s house. While he had been on the lookout for a new apartment, he had yet to find one he actually liked compared to one he was just willing to live in because he had to. It had been his self-given job this week; to find a new apartment, but thus far he had been ultimately unsuccessful. Still, with a warm comfortable bed in his parent’s back room, he wanted to believe there was no rush… except for the fact he was thirty and technically living with his parents. So, it was sort of desperate.

By the time he had crawled into bed and turned the lights off, he realised he left his phone down stairs. He hoped that Mindy didn’t have any plant emergencies until the morning, but realistically he knew he wouldn’t really be needed. He was starting to really like Mindy. She had enough curiosity and genius in her to work at NASA after her stint at university, but enough caution to be worried about killing seeds. Not that he liked her for her intellect alone, but rather that the favour she did him would not be easy to move on from. And despite giving her seeds and buying her dinner it didn’t feel like he had paid off even the smallest fraction of his debt. In fact, it was starting to feel like a band-aid on a missing limb; useless and almost an insult.

He often found himself frustrated and trying to weigh on his words of thanks and when she brushed them off it was like she didn’t want to hear it - but, how could he not say it? He supposed he would just have to keep being grateful to her until he felt like she had had enough of him or he dies of old age, since that is exactly what he felt he owed her - his life. And if that meant sending her seeds from the plant named after him and taking her out for dinner and organising get-togethers for her and the staff, then he would do it for as often as she could make it. Even if it had him twisting with nerves like he was asking her out for a date and not just for her company at a staff night he organised. Dating and flirting hadn't been his intention so far, he just wanted to show his gratitude, but that didn't mean it sometimes slipped out when he wasn't paying attention.

Still, she hadn’t told him no yet.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A bit from Mark this time. Originally there was a 7k flashback, but I've ended up splitting it up. Maybe when it's all finished and done i'll put all the flashbacks into one fic, y'know, for organisations sake.
> 
> Also, if anyone is interested they did actually name a real plant after Mark - here's the reference: 
> 
> Martine CT, Frawley ES, Cantley JT, Jordon-Thaden IE (2016) Solanum watneyi, a new bush tomato species from the Northern Territory, Australia named for Mark Watney of the book and film “The Martian”. PhytoKeys 61: 1-13. doi: 10.3897/phytokeys.61.6995


	5. Chapter 5

She had completely forgotten. With her late shift and her panic over her seeds, it had completely slipped her mind. Yesterday was the last day of the month and that meant payday. She was never this excited over payday - sure, it was always nice to have money in her account again before it was whipped out for bills - but today was different, today was important. Today was the day she could get her car. 

Every day into work she passed a Toyota dealership and every day she scanned their lot, longing to be driving down the 290 rather than being driven. Now, however, as she phoned her last taxi, she was almost giddy as Avocado played with her shoe laces. 

“We could go to the beach, Avie.” Avocado didn’t seem to understand the gravity of the situation and continued to bat at her laces. “I don’t know if you’d like one of those harnesses fancy cats have, but we could give it a shot, right?” 

A small meow was her answer as she pushed his tiny paws away to tie her shoes. Leaving her couch to pick up her purse from the counter and her jacket off the back of her door, Avocado pranced after her. 

“I won’t be long and Claire won’t be in.” He mewed again, seemingly in recognition of Mindy’s neighbours name who occasionally helped her out by feeding Avocado when Mindy worked late. “I’ll be home in a bit, be good, okay?” 

# 

She had made it all the way to the dealership before she felt for her phone and realised she had left it on the couch. With a sudden pang of worry, she realised that she’d be walking in here with no help or assistance bar the people who are paid to make sure she takes home a car at the prices they set. Still, she refused to turn back now with the car she had been after for months in her sights. She wasn’t going to let it sit here any longer.

# 

Sitting in the stationary car in the lot she had been asking the dealer all sorts of questions as he pointed out how things worked and what sort of extras it had - which was many to her delight. SatNav, automatic lights, heated seats (although why she would need those in Texas, she’d never know) and a nice music system. She was getting along well, listening carefully to the explanation of the hybrid system (which she already knew more about than the salesman) when a bullet of realisation hit her hard. 

“Oh, shit-” She gasped, her mouth agape as she came to terms with her mistake.

“A-are you okay?” The salesman, obviously concerned for the colour draining from her face. 

“My plant-” Her hands left the steering wheel and went straight to her face. “I forgot to water my plant-” 

“I’m sure it’ll be okay, you can always get another one if it dries out-” The salesman joked, but his reassurance wasn’t appreciated.

“No, you don’t understand, that plant is really, really important.” Even though she told Mark if she killed it she could tell him she ‘told him so’, she didn’t actually want to tell him that, she wanted to grow and be proud of it but it was only day two of even having it and she’s already failed it. “Uh, listen, I actually know all of this already, I know everything from the carburetors to the exhaust and back again and you’re wrong about the hybrid engine, it’s not that powerful, but I don’t need it to be, so can I just sign the documents and get out of here?” 

# 

After Mindy corrected the salesman on a few aspects like how many miles per gallon she’d really get, how fast it can actually go and the electric-to-fuel efficiency scale, she managed to knock some money off it and get it for a lot cheaper than she thought it would be - her mom would be proud. But, by the time she had it roadworthy and insured, she had lost about three hours and she had felt every minute. With her complete inexperience with plants she was sure that every second longer would be killing it more, making the damage irreversible. She didn’t even have her phone to text her neighbour, or Mark to ask if the plant would be okay. 

While her new hybrid didn’t exactly whiz back up the 290, she got back to her apartment quick enough, only losing another 40 minutes to the strength of the sun. With her door keys jangling in her hand in the elevator, she barely waited for the doors to open and had herself squeezing out the elevator and jogging down the hall. Throwing herself into her apartment, she dropped her bag to the floor as her eyes went straight to the window sill to find an empty window sill where her plant had been only that morning. 

A second look had her quickly following a trail of soil over her counter and off the other side where a plant pot lay half empty with soil scattered over her floor. Gasping in horror, she dove to the floor, scraping the soil into the pot and trying to find the seeds at the same time. She had found four seeds by the time there were only the smallest grains of parched soil around her knees but she wasn’t going to abandon a seed. It was then that the accused came into view as she peered under the her sofa. Avocado, lying in front of her sofa was pawing maliciously at something dark and small and instantly Mindy knew what. 

“Avocado Park!” Grabbing him up and out of reach of his new ‘toy’, she dumped him on the sofa as she went down for the seed, “You fluffy monster, if you have killed this plant before I have, you’re in so much trouble.” She investigated the tiny seeds in her hand, turning it this way and that before she noticed it had burst. It was only slight, but the hard shell had separated along its edge and the tiniest of greenery could be spotted within. She tutted at her cat before carefully slotting it back into the soil.

“I can’t believe you, Avocado. What did these seeds ever do to you?” She placed it back up on the window sill despite knowing that, if given the chance, Avocado would be at it again. Shifting the pot round into the sun, she looked at it apologetically before turning back to her cat.

“If you touch this pot again, I’ll have to lock you in the bedroom and we both know how much you hate that.” she pointed a finger at him which he complained at before hopping off the sofa and rolling on her rug. With a stressed sigh she turned to find a glass to water her seeds with before she confessed to Mark what had happened.

[09:01:12] don’t forgot to water that plant!

[09:43:34] seriously, in this sun you’re gonna have to water it…

She had missed messages from him reminding her to water her plant and now she felt even worse since it looked like she had been ignoring him. And after everything he, Martian Hero Mark Watney, had done for her and she couldn’t even reply to a text from him - which, in itself, was still surreal (but a much needed improvement from the morse code).

[13:15:23] I am so sorry!! I left the house this morning without my phone and then I was out for ages and I only remembered about the plant like two hours ago - I’m a bad plant parent, I know - and then i got home as quick as i could but avocado knocked it over and i don’t know how long it was 1/2  
[13:16:04] on my floor for and then he was playing with a seed and i think it’s already cracked open idk if thats good or bad! or if he did it or the seed did it! have i killed this plant?? i haven’t even had it for 24 hours im so sorry - you should never have trusted me with these seeds!! 2/2

It was clear she was stressed - her usual text etiquette had been thoroughly abandoned as she slipped into abbreviations and lowercase for quickness. She waited with bated breath for him to text back, fully convinced her plant was dead and gone and she hadn’t even had it for a full day yet.

[13:20:03] wait, wait, an avocado knocked a whole plant pot over? did you throw one at it? and then? ‘he’ was playing with a seed? he who? I’m confused.

In her distress she hadn’t realised she had typed out her cat’s whole name when usually, to save herself this exact conversation (and slight embarrassment), she called him Avie but she had no option but to explain it now. 

[13:21:08] No! I didn’t throw an avocado at the plant pot! Avocado is my cat. He was playing with the seed!

[13:21:13] you called a cat avocado?

[13:21:15] Mark!

[13:21:25] okay - did you put all the seeds back in the soil still spread out?

[13:21:29] Yes!

[13:21:36] and put as much soil back in it as you could + watered it?

[13:21:42] Yes!!

[13:22:00] then it’ll be fine. trust me, that plant is stronger than you think. it could easily fight an avocado.

[13:22:10] Are you sure? That last seed had cracked

[13:22:20] yeah, cause it was in damp soil - its growing. don’t freak out, they do that.

[13:22:36] water them again in a few hours time, okay?

[13:24:00] Okay. Thanks, Mark ):

[13:24:25] don’t worry, i’m the greatest botanist of mars, plants do my bidding really.

[13:25:54] also, you gotta tell my why you called your cat avocado.

[13:26:26] I will on Thursday. You’ll be disappointed, it’s not interesting

[13:27:03] there’s a cat in this world called avocado. disappointed is the last thing i am.

“Disappointed might be the last thing he is, Avocado, but you’re in trouble with me.” Although with his big green eyes looking up at her, she couldn’t stop herself from reaching out to pat him.


	6. Chapter 6

Mindy was glad to be back at work come Monday. Even more glad to be greeted by an excited Venkat in the parking lot. 

“You got the car!” He cheered, raising his ever-present briefcase above his head in celebration. “Y’know, Mindy, SevenDays is gonna be pissed you’ve stopped paying all their wages.”

She laughed as she grabbed her bagful of folders out the back of her car and beeped the key to lock it. “I think they really will miss me, I was stable income for them.” So stable she had been on first name terms with the operators as well as most of the drivers, but she was far happier managing her journeys herself now. 

“Exactly, they’re gonna be waiting on you out here after your shift out of habit.” He nudged her playfully with his briefcase as he joked. “How’s your project going? I meant to look over it at the weekend, but I didn’t get a minute.” 

“Good,” Following him into the building she passed the door to the employee behind her before she jogged to keep up with Venkat’s long strides. “Not a lot of activity, but on clear days we get good images, at least.” 

“Oh yeah?” His gaze caught hers and he nodded towards her bag, “Can I see? Just quick?” 

“Yeah, hold on.” She fished through her bag for the most recent satellite picture of Olympus Mons before handing it over. 

“Damn, look at that.” Turning it this way and that while they rode the escalator, he pushed his glasses up with his bicep as he inspected it closer. “No activity, you said?” 

“No, nothing yet. I mean, it’s still hot and the evidence of the last eruption still points to the mid nineteenth century, but nothing else so far.” Her finger pointed to some blurry and pixelated bumps and grooves on the picture as the ‘evidence’ but she knew it wasn’t the exciting and interesting news Venkat would’ve liked. She was still on the case though and she was sure she would at least be able to confirm the existing conclusions if nothing else.

“So what’s next?” He asked as they were nearing the point in the corridor where they split.

“Well, like we said, after concluding the usual lack in activity, we look to it’s past, try and find out the date of the previous eruption before the one in the eighteen hundreds.” She nodded as she spoke, remembering the order of tasks she had written in the inside of one of the many folders sitting around her station. 

“Like you said, Mindy.” Raising his brows at her, he had been trying over the past few weeks to start having her take the credit for her work. Teamwork and giving credit to others was nice and she was courteous, but this was all her work and just because they had discussed it as a duo didn’t mean he was going to take credit for that. “Take credit for what you did, it’s great work.” He turned to leave her after she nodded, accepting the praise. 

“See you later, then.” She called, stepping off to her crowded desk at SatCon.

#

A few hours into her shift and she had completely settled in for the long run. This was normality and she was comfortable in it. Moving satellites hundreds of thousands of miles away and waiting for their images to return before analysing them and drawing conclusions was interesting, engaging and at the forefront of new knowledge. Every picture she downloaded had never been seen before by anyone on Earth (or anywhere else) and she was the one who was to evaluate these new images of an ancient Mars and make sense of it. Her difficulties lay in her inexperience of geology and volcanology since that was exactly what she had been looking at. What she had done, however, is detail it the best she could with her own knowledge and maybe a little assistance from Google before sending some emails to NASA-ready volcanologists in a series of universities across the world who were always there to be bothered about things like this.

It was especially apparent that she was a little beyond her depth when she started to second guess some markings she had palmed off as nothing more than coincidental rock formations four days earlier. It was a strange thought to hit her that the single-pixel wide line might be the evidence she had been searching for for three months, yet she still spent the next twenty minutes trying to disprove her irrational thought. 

What she had been looking for before was evidence of an active volcano. Olympus Mons is the largest volcano in the recorded solar system and no one was actually sure when it last erupted or when it will again… except, that was her task - to find out. Thus far, the rovers at the base of the volcano and the satellite images she had been pulling were showing no evidence of recent activity, but that tiny line could be everything. That tiny line hadn’t been there three month ago , but of course, she knew better than most how sand and wind can change a landscape after staring at the AresIII site for almost a year. But in hindsight, if there’s a miniscule dot shown on an image taken from miles and miles up in the sky, there’s a high chance it’s not just a miniscule dot on the ground. 

So, what was the line? Any number of things, really, but most realistically she supposed it could be igneous volcanic rocks being spat out from the mouth of Olympus Mons, but they were in a line, so unless someone was arranging them into more morse code for her, it was unlikely. 

She sighed at the brief flash of hollow hope she remembered being filled with while reading those morse code messages in the sand. He had felt so very far away, so lost and out of reach that at points, despite being his first point of contact (not that he knew), she really didn’t know if he was going to make it or not. It was that thinking that had her in silent tears in her apartment with Avocado as a comforting weight by her side. She didn’t want to spend her working days watching this strong astronaut try so hard but end up faltering and failing while being completely helpless behind a computer desk. It was these days that had her second guessing her worth or ability to help him. It had been stressful on her to the point where her mom really started to worry about her health, especially when she was told about the new sleeping habits Mindy had picked up, but she couldn’t accept that it was ever as stressful a time as Mark had. However, when Mark reached the Hermes, her great relief had bulldozed her pity, and again when he touched back on Earth. 

Mindy clicked her pen to bring her out her thoughts and back to her task, she couldn’t waste time daydreaming when she was possibly getting somewhere with it. So, if it was a line of igneous volcanic rocks then maybe something was creating an invisible barrier of sorts, but she couldn’t think of what. Re-aiming her satellites and pawing through all her old images of the same area, she set them out in front of her as she grabbed the brightest highlighter she could find. She highlighted the tiny line over and over on sheets from different times, all marking it in the exact same place to let her see how things had changed before and after that line had got there. It wasn't long before she started to see a loose circle around Olympus Mons. A large but incredibly faint ring - one you wouldn’t see unless you were looking for it. And one that had steadily grown ever so slightly darker as time had wore on. 

Mindy’s brows dipped, trying to figure out what it all meant together. It was hard enough trying to estimate eruptions on Earth, but on Mars she could only really estimate from her images since the rovers were nowhere near the volcano. She was judging a lot by hope and assumption - and hard facts were very hard to prove on ‘assumptions’. But, if this ring was developing, it could be one of two things, she assumed. Either, igneous rocks being spat out of Olympus Mons which meant magma was rising within which then meant that an eruption was happening. Or, that the actual surface of the volcano was shifting - something that happens before an eruption… So, in an assumed conclusion, Olympus Mons was erupting? 

Mindy didn’t know where to sigh, cry or shout: this was getting stressful - it could mean the beginning of an unimaginable surge or knowledge of Martian evolution or a big fuss over nothing. She still wasn’t convinced by her conclusions and drafted a series of e-mails in the direction of all those specialists she had on offer and sent them off. Now, however, she was in limbo having found and concluded what she could before passing it to someone else. Unsure what to do now, she crossed her arms and slouched back in her seat, watching her e-mail refresh itself every few minutes with no new mail appearing. Knowing she couldn’t just sit like this for the rest of her night, she did something she wouldn’t have even considered this time last year and left early (early, for _her_ ). 

# 

Venkat found his office quiet, for once, but he was far from idle. Tuesdays were often busy since Monday’s were usually spent discussing work for the rest of the week and he, unfortunately, had at least forty things to do today alone. The muted television in the corner was on a news channel, running the same stories from that day on a loop to keep him informed while he clicked around on his computer, trying to deal with China, their terms and the astronaut they had selected for the next Ares mission - none of which were quite adding up to what they had agreed to at the time. Still, he was trying as best he could while keeping more people than was necessary in the loop. Meanwhile he had orders to fill, projects to approve and update while managing things of his own. 

He had become quite accustomed to ignoring the beeping of his phone - often notifications of e-mails he had already answered rather than of anything new, but this wasn’t the familiar three notes but rather the strong two beeps he had on the emergency phone he kept in his top left suit jacket inner-pocket. It wasn’t exactly modern but it was on constantly, every day of every week - ever ready for disaster. Still, it was rare for it to ping when there were no current space missions under his guidance but he didn’t waste time in grabbing it. 

_Mindy Park: Remember the last time I used this number I gave you an astronaut?_

_Me: Mindy this is an emergency number for a reason._

_Mindy Park: I know! It’s really important and you weren’t replying to your other number_

_Me: What is it Mindy??_

_Mindy Park: Well, it’s OM - there’s activity._

_Me: Are you sure???_

_Mindy Park: No but - just come and see_

Her uncertainty in her own emergency had a frustration rubbing over him, but if she was right - if she had concluded correctly - then it would be the second biggest discovery on Mars in recent times and both found by the same woman.  
#

Venkat showed no real physical exertion as he came into SatCon, heading straight for an impatient Mindy. 

“Thanks for rushing.” She looked disapprovingly at his usual pace. “Although, it could still be nothing, I didn’t think I could see anything from within the volcano but…” Pushing her glasses up, she turned back to her computer to point at a series of email replies she had. “Y’know how when volcanoes are about to erupt and sometimes the surface exhibits changes?” 

Venkat nodded quickly along as she explained before telling her to hurry up with a circling finger.

“Okay, okay, so look-” Bringing up a selection of images of the exact same area over a period of the three months, she circled the ring around the volcano in each picture, occasionally glancing back to Venkat to make sure he was following. “Do you see? It’s getting thicker or heavier or _something_.” 

“Okay… okay… so, what were those e-mails?” Venkat, not yet fully reacting the way Mindy had been hoping. 

“Well, before I told you I thought I better check it with volcanologists and they seem pretty positive about it.” Pulling up her e-mail tab, she wheeled herself back from her computer to let Venkat lean in closer. 

“‘Dear Miss Park,’” Venkat read, “Thank you for allowing me, blah, blah, blah - _almost certain_ that this is due to an upcoming eruption.” He raised his brows at her, obviously not wanting to get his hopes up. 

“‘Miss Park,’” He started again, “‘Despite the quality of the image’ - rude - ‘I must say there is a strong possibility of eruption between eight to possibly twenty four months.’” Venkat’s hand went to his mouth before rubbing off his jaw, his expression deep in thought. “Eight to twenty four months…” 

“Yeah, and the last e-mail said that with the way the rest of the volcano is formed, they suggested that the eruption before the one in the eighteen _twenties_ happened two hundred years before that - and two hundred years after the nineteenth century one is… now.”

Venkat fell quiet as he sat down on the floor by her desk, a spot he often took while they were watching Mark. He pulled his glasses from his face and looked up at the large screens full of the images Mindy had downloaded from the satellites. 

“Mindy…” 

“Yes?” 

“Why do you keep finding shit we missed?” 

“I’m just really damn good, I guess,” Even though there was still a chance it was nothing or that it might be two years - or more - before anything happens, she toyed with her round-about praise from Venkat. “I mean you should probably give me another raise.” 

#

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> back to a bit of normality for mindy - which just means things happening at work that throw her in the deep end again since i felt she'd been out and about enough for now. also sorry to anyone who knows how volcanoes actually work since to me they are just a fire hill.


	7. Chapter 7

After Venkat came to terms with the possibility of Olympus Mons erupting on Mindy’s clock, he headed off to release a statement. After all, three volcanologists had been included in the discovery and since NASA had to release all the satellite images to the public and with Mindy aiming specifically of Olympus Mons, there had been some academic whispering as to why. What Mindy had been expecting on Wednesday morning was the usual generic statement when something the least bit interesting happens: “NASA finds evidence to suggest Olympus Mons may erupt soon.”, but not “NASA satellite engineer, Mindy Park, finds evidence to suggest Mars volcano, Olympus Mons, may erupt soon.”. 

Her stomach flipped when she read the statement, feeling a rock of responsibility falling to her shoulders. All this meant to her was that if it didn’t erupt, if nothing happened and everything she had seen was just Mars being Martian and unpredictable, everyone who was now interested would plant their disappointment on her. Her mom, on the other hand, had a different view of it. 

“Mindy! You found a volcano!” Mindy tried not to roll her eyes at the other side of the phone. She had sent her mom the link to the statement from the NASA website but it was clear when her mom had called roughly fifteen seconds later that she had only read the heading. 

“No, mom, I didn’t find a volcano, I think it might erupt soon.” She explained, trying to keep the tone from her voice. While her mom was always supportive of her academics through college and then of her job, there were somethings that she couldn’t quite get her head around - Mindy didn’t blame her, not everyone was interested in space and other planets. 

“Oh - is that good or bad?” Her mom asked, her voice significantly lower as if she was considering whether or not she should’ve sounded as excited as she did at the start of the call. 

“It’s really good, mom, it means we can learn a lot about Mars and how it evolved.” Amongst other things, but even Mindy couldn’t list those - she thought of herself as just the girl with the camera, the real experts will be moving in soon. 

“That’s so great, honey! You got your name on the website thing and everything - it’s your volcano now.” Her mom assured and Mindy laughed. 

“I don’t think that’s how it works.” Still, she knew now any time her mom would phone her she’s going to ask about ‘her volcano’ and not ‘Olympus Mons’. “But I’ll let you know if they decide to rename it Mindy Mons, okay?” 

“You’ve found so much on that planet, you deserve to have your stake on it!” Even Mindy couldn’t deny that this was her second discovery of Mars in four years - not many satellite engineers can say they found anything except the sand and rocks they have been aiming at. She was still just lucky but neither discovery was enough to ‘gain a stake’ - plus you can’t really claim a stake on a living person and Olympus Mons already had a name. “Are you coming home soon? I haven’t seen Avie in a year, you need to bring him home.” 

This time Mindy really did roll her eyes. “Mom, you say that every time and I bring him and all you do is cry and sneeze, you know you’re allergic.” But her mom pleaded and Mindy sighed in defeat. “Fine, I’ll bring him next month but you can’t get angry at me or Avie when your eyes start itching.” 

# 

 

For the rest of the day Mindy carried on with her project trying to find further evidence of eruption or of why she can only find evidence outside the volcano and not from within. The issue was that usually she could lose herself in her work, almost to the point of being entranced, but not today as her phone flashed on and off every few moments. Mindy’s college friends, although scattered around the world now, had caught wind of her article and since they were all in the field one way or another and well aware she got the NASA job, had inundated her phone with congratulations and questions about just how she did it. It was not the first time this had happened. In fact, just after Mark had been declared alive (with, thankfully, no mention of her name) most of her college friends, professors and even people she didn’t actually know were texting her about what was going on - not that she told them anything. Much like then, she decided to ignore the majority and only message back a couple of the people she knew the most, but only to tell them there wasn’t much the article left out. 

Still, the texts and messages continued to arrive and eventually she disabled the notifications. It was a bit overwhelming. In reality, it was a big discovery but she hadn’t done anything more than anyone else would have in her position. Just like when she found Mark, it had been opportunistic, lucky, a right-time and right-place type of fortune. It hadn’t taken large mental abilities, hard maths or knowledge to look at pictures and deduce and it was in this that Mindy struggled. There were engineers in NASA who built the crafts and did the maths - like Rich Purnell who still kept to himself and Mindy had yet to actually meet for longer than a minute - while she sat and looked at pictures. She had thought once Mark was back on the Hermes she might get away from the satellites for a while but instead she was promoted to deal with them further. It wasn’t a complaint, she did love her job, but she was still the girl with the cameras - she’d just switched from long-range paparazzi to nature photographer. 

The comments from Teddy came back to her - “you were just in the hotseat” - as she chewed at her lip. He was right and he was right again this time. He might have apologised for his tone when he said that, but he was still right. Maybe this would happen every time. She might end up being lucky enough to find a plethora of unimaginable Martian treasures, only to have found them from doing nothing but looking at pictures. 

She let out the breath she had been holding and stopped looking into space long enough to grab her phone and leave her desk for a break. She was sure that when Venkat orchestrated the article he thought he was doing her a favour since he’d been telling her to ‘own her work’ for the past few weeks. But it felt like a pointed finger rather than a clap on the back. 

As she waited for the ever present pot of coffee to fill again, her gaze went to her phone while pushing her glasses onto her head. She ran through her texts first, looking down the list of names but ultimately ignoring all of them. Most messages started of with exclamation marks and ‘wow’s and ‘olympus mons!!’ and she had very little curiosity to find out what the rest of the messages said. She continued to scroll down the list, making sure no one of actual importance had text her like her neighbour, Claire, who was checking in on Avocado today with strict instructions to make sure her plantpot was still upright on the kitchen windowsill and if it was, to then water it lightly. But with no messages from Claire or anyone else, she started to delete the notifications from her social media pages while pouring her coffee into her mug. Much to her dismay there were even messages left from scientific news websites asking for her ‘comment’ on her discovery - but what else could she say about it that hadn’t already been said? Pursing her lips as she deleted that as well, finding the attention a little surreal. No one could really do anything about it if it did erupt except sit back and watch the show so why they were after her to comment on it, she really didn’t know. Plus, she was sure if she was pressured for a comment, she’d say the wrong thing and she’d end up on the run from Annie.

Slumping into a chair in the break room, she didn’t want to return to her desk just yet. Her gaze found the the map of Arcadia Planitia with a long line drawn between two points by Venkat two years ago. Despite the protests by staff on break at Venkat vandalising their maps it had become a little bit of break-room history and had been put back up with honour. She smirked at it, thinking about how much she and Venkat managed and how much he had helped her in the past. She couldn’t blame him for putting her name on that article, and really, she ought to have thanked him by now out of politeness.

[17:54:18] Hey Venkat. Thanks for the article, you didn’t have to name me.

[18:03:10] Is that a complaint or gratitude?

[18:03:28] Gratitude.

[18:07:12] You’re welcome. But I’m sure our company on Thursday will have some questions for you, so brush up. 

[18:07:32] So you’re definitely going? 

[18:07:55] Yes and so are you. 

If that wasn’t a warning for the conversation topics Venkat had up his sleeve, she didn’t know what would be. She was grateful for it, though, since he could obviously tell the closer it was getting the more anxious she was getting over it. Each guest had been plaguing her mind over the past few days with their legacy or even the only few words they had spoken to her thus far. Venkat, however, was clearly going to help steer the conversation to topics she would know and if she sat beside him she knew she’d be okay. She just hoped no one would cut her off or place her out of range of Venkat. 

She knew she should be more open to staff nights out and sometimes she was. She went to the Mission Control end-of-AresIII mission night out for a few hours to show face, but this was different. This wasn’t just the people who sat beside her Monday to Friday, these were her bosses and intellectual superiors and she was having dinner with them. And, of course, the man of the moment - Mark - who had been ever so graciously texting her morning and night as a reminder to water her plants. 

So, on one hand, she was hesitant - not wanting to sit through a dinner with people she had only ever worked with, and sometimes not even that. But, on the other, she did want to see Mark again and thank him for helping her with the seeds he made her plant… except thinking of doing that made her a little bit nervous too. The issue now was that it was Wednesday evening and she somehow had to come to terms with her uneasiness in the situation by tomorrow night. 

#


	8. Chapter 8

Work on Thursday was torture. There was no other word for it. With every e-mail sent or word on her project, she checked the time. She wasn’t even sure if she wanted time to hurry up or slow down, but either way it was moving quicker when she wanted it slow and slow when she wanted it quicker. She was sure she wasn’t even this nervous when she had been out with Mark alone, but with Mark and the managers, she could barely handle it. She had been given the address to the restaurant, with exact directions to the table, that morning alongside her usual daily reminder-text to water her seedlings which she appreciated, but even that level of reassurance wasn’t enough to calm her. 

Come her late-lunch break, she looked at the microwavable pasta dish she brought with her with deep consideration. Her insides were already flipping every time the clock moved forward so she decided to forgo lunch since she knew she would be ill with it until she reached the restaurant. Instead of putting her stomach to the test, she hugged a mug of tea that was slightly more milk than it was anything else. 

She had tried to work through her nerves, ask herself why she felt like she did but all she came up with were bland answers since she didn’t want to look that deeply into it while sitting at her desk. There was a time and a place for self reflection and the middle of a working day was not it - even if the source of her issue lay in the night she was about to have. 

#

Mindy, deciding she'd probably need at least a little bit of alcohol to be mellow enough to survive the night, left her car at home and reluctantly called a cab. She had been ready too early and had been sitting patting Avocado who had lost interest eventually and wandered off. Since it was late and he didn't need any specific attention, he would be left on his own until she got back but that had her concerned for her plant pot. He hadn't touched it since the incident, but she didn’t want to have Mark bring up the plant and for her to talk about it with pride only for Avocado to be destroying it at home. She didn't really want to lock him in her room, but she could feel the temptation he must’ve found too much to bear - the highly regarded object on the high shelf, just waiting to be batted off to the floor. By the time her cab was outside she had convinced herself that Mark would know best - the sprouting seedlings could probably “fight an avocado” (fluffy or otherwise). She reminded the fluffy Avocado to be good as she left, specifically mentioning to leave the plant alone as if he would understand. 

She realised, sometime into her journey, that the taxi cab behind her was Venkat after texting him to ask him where he was only to be told “behind you”. With a glance over her shoulder and out the back window, sure enough was Venkat’s familiar pursed lipped smile as he raised a hand in a wave. She waved back and turned round to face the front - sometimes the motion of cars didn't agree with her… or maybe it was the approaching dinner. Wanting to blame it on the car, her gaze dropped to her phone for the time. It was only half seven and with ten minutes of her journey to go, she and Venkat would be early. 

Or she had thought so when they pulled up at the same time only to find familiar faces outside the restaurant before them. 

“Annie, you're early.” Venkat observed before telling her she looked lovely, like any gentleman should.

“Is that a complaint? Want me to go drive around and come back at ten past?” Her usual attitude still dripped from her, but her comment had made Mindy smile. Mindy always admired Annie’s sharp sarcasm since it showed a confidence she felt she was missing.

“Hey, Mindy, how's Mars?” Annie asked, her eyes a little too focused on her phone for her greeting to be considered polite to anyone who didn’t know her. Mindy didn't mind though, she was well aware how busy Annie was all the time. 

“Red and dusty.” Annie obviously hadn't been expecting an answer as blatant since her gaze flicked towards Mindy, only to return a small smirk. 

“Heard you found something interesting on Olympus Mons,” Started Mitch, pointing the neck of a beer bottle in her direction, “How'd that come about?”

Mindy took a breath to answer but Venkat cut in first.

“Why are you hanging outside at the door? Inside not ready?” Venkat brows had pulled while he tried to glance through the dark windows for clues.

“No, you can go in, we're waiting on Teddy.” Annie explained.

“He needs a welcome party now?” Venkat asked under his breath but Mitch caught it and had to stifle a laugh before giving Venkat a rough shrug of his shoulders. “C’mon, Mindy, let's get a seat.”

Following Venkat, Mindy didn't need to think on the internal directions Mark had sent her and instead could focus on why there were more people at their intended table than she had pictured and why she didn't recognise them as instantly as Venkat did. 

“Hey guys!” His tone had lifted considerably as his arms opened to brush along the shoulders of the four men before dipping to the cheeks of the four women. “I thought you'd have all been back home? And in Germany!”

Germany. Of course. Mindy had suddenly routed to the spot as she realised who these people were. The AresIII crew in all their glory with spouses and partners by their sides. It was different seeing them in a casual setting with partners breaking up the usual space-suited lineup. 

Alex Vogel shrugged and nodded towards the door. He spoke of Mitch insisting they took up Mark’s offer before they left and Alex giving in because how could he say no the Martian Hero? Mindy then realised that Mark was missing from the table as a few of the world's most recent celebrities started to look up at her.

Venkat finally stopped his greeting to introduce her as his hands planted firmly to her shoulders. 

“This is Miss Mindy Park - she saw Mark first.” Venkat sounded like he was almost gloating while enlightened noises came from the astronauts at the table.

“So it's you who I should sue?” Rick Martinez asked with a glint in his eye. “It's just…” He continued with a brief pause as he playfully thought over his words. “We got on so much better without him. We didn’t have to listen to his awful plant talk or deal with snoring so loud he rocked the Hermes-”

“I do not snore - if anyone is getting the blame for that it's Johanssen!” Mark had appeared from behind Mindy, lightly placing a hand on her shoulder. “You guys gotta be nice to Mindy ‘cause she saved my ass and gave me the chance to be one of the few people who get two funerals.” 

He squeezed her shoulder as he and his crew laughed and grinned at his morbid joke but waved and nodded hellos to her all the while. Mindy smiled, returned the greetings and sat quickly down beside Venkat who had taken a seat at the short edge of the large rectangular table. 

“So, Mindy” Rick started again, leaning over the spare chair that sat between him and Mindy, as the rest of the crew had splintered into their own conversations, “Has he given you seeds yet?” Rick tilted his head towards Mark who sat directly opposite Mindy and beside Beck.

“He has actually - but I told him not to trust me with them.” Her gaze went to Mark disapprovingly since he obviously never heeded her warning, but in turning away from Rick, she didn’t catch the look he shot to Mark. Turning back to Rick, she expanded “I can’t grow anything, I kill everything green - and my cat doesn’t like them either.”

She turned to smile at Venkat who had been caught in a conversation with a recently seated Mitch over something she couldn’t pick up on. 

“And what seeds did he give you?” Rick asked as his wife laughed openly at the conversation from the other end of the table.

“Mark won’t tell me.”

“He won’t?” Rick thought for a second before a grin broke out across his lips, his eyes flicking mischievously to Mark. “I bet I know what they are - damn, Watney, send a clearer message.” Mindy could pick up that Rick was being sarcastic and apparently the message in the seeds was clear, or would be clear once they were grown. 

“Don’t you dare tell her, she needs to grow them herself-” Mark argued, pointing a warning finger to his friend who was now delighted in knowing he was right.

“But if she knew what they were she could look after them better, right?” Encouraging Mindy to nod in agreement, they both looked pleadingly at Mark.

“You don’t need to look after them ‘better’, okay, they’re doing fine as they are.” Mark reassured while Rick laughed.

“Is it warm in here or just you?” Rick pulled at the collar of his shirt with his eyes on Mark, trying to tell him something between the lines. He might’ve been a little flushed, but Mindy was lost on what she assumed to be an inside joke.

“Hey, maybe you should use lines like that on your wife instead of me, huh?” Even Mindy could sense a shut down within the joke and couldn’t help but smile at Mark’s distinct uneasiness.

“Alright, man, you’re the hero space-pirate botanist.” 

“You’re damn right.” Taking a sip of beer, he went to catch Mindy’s eye before raising his gaze over her head. “Rich! Teddy - grab a seat.”

#  
By the time everyone had sat, had drinks and ordered, it was almost nine. Mindy found herself at the corner of the table with Venkat on her left and Rich Purnell on her right. Mitch was on the short edge of the table beside Venkat and had Mark on his left which left Mark directly opposite Mindy. They had created their own conversation bubble, occasionally joined by Chris and Beth on the other side of Mark, and Rick on the other side of Rich. 

When Rich had arrived Mindy felt a pang of regret. The rest of crew knew him well enough to warrant a number of handshakes and welcomes to and from him. Mindy had only met him once before and they had said no more than a hello to each other. She viewed him as an integral part of Mark’s rescue while she had discounted herself from being as useful as he was and hadn’t wanted to keep him from talking to others. He seemed as unused to a social setting as she was and they did eventually make conversation over satellites and work before branching out to the usual ‘and where do you stay?’ small talk. The rest of the table seemed more than familiar with each other and the conversation flowed wherever Mark went as he travelled to different points of the table as an independent host.

Still, she felt like she had been too quick to remove herself from the people at the table before now. Venkat had tried to get her to meet them only a week or so after they had been back. She declined, saying it wasn’t right to impose herself on them, thinking that they wouldn’t have wanted to deal with unimportant SatCom staff after five years in space. Yet it hadn’t been all that long since they had touched down and they welcomed Rich like an old friend, while Mindy was introduced for the first time. 

#

“So, uh, guess what I found out this week?” Mark started, bringing the separated conversation between the five of them back together. “Mindy has a plant-hating cat called ‘Avocado’.”

Mindy could feel her face heat up instantly while her brows piqued and her eyes pleaded for mercy - the last thing she wanted was to be the conversation topic never mind the centre of the discussion, but even Venkat was too invested in the story to notice her silent distress.

“You called a cat after the world's most visually unappealing fruit?” 

“No!” She started defiantly but as her eyes met Mark’s she sighed, losing her fire. “Well, maybe - Mark only knows because I text him it without thinking, but you're going to be so disappointed in this story.”

With a little persuading from Venkat and Mitch and an interested ear from Rich on her right, she went on. “I got Avie three months before I started my job - a week after I moved into my flat, okay? I was trying to be good to this kitten and name him something proper” She started to shake her head at her own story, refusing to divulge the fact she had scoured the internet and bought a baby name book from the local bookshop.

“I wanted to name him something spacey or Roman, but it felt too patronising.” He had been named after every planet, every moon and satellite for a few hours each before she scrapped it and started over with something else. “Then, I was making dinner, he was sleeping on the counter where I could watch him and I was cutting an avocado, he woke up and-” She rolled her eyes in a brief pause, causing Venkat and Mark to urge her forward with an ‘and?’, “And his green eyes reminded me of the avocado I was cutting. So I said ‘Avocado?’ and he meowed.” 

“Holy shit.” Mark whispered as Venkat, Mitch and Rich all sat back in their chairs, taking in the incredible anti-climax. 

“See, I told you you’d be disappointed.” Looking pointedly at Mark who had been waiting to hear the story for more than a few days. 

“I’m not disappointed,” Venkat cut in. “I just can’t believe you called a cat ‘Avocado’. It’s like calling a planet… Planet.” Venkat wore a deep frown as he thought over Mindy’s story, the frown he wore when things were just a little too out of reach. “Or just ‘Chris’. Can you imagine,” He turned to Mitch, resting one hand on his shoulder while using the other for emphasis. “Telling Annie to go out and tell the world we found another planet and we didn’t call it Jupiter or Saturn, we called it ‘Chris’.” Mindy rolled her eyes at the dramatic exaggeration while Mitch and Mark laughed. 

“Someone naming a planet after me?” Chris ducked into the conversation, obviously from having heard his name. “‘Bout damn time, really.” 

#

The conversation shifted throughout the night and eventually, as Venkat had warned, Olympus Mons came up. Since leading the conversation on her cat a little earlier, she had felt more comfortable answering the questions of the astronauts and space-minded people around the table. 

“And when do you think it’s going to erupt?” Commander Lewis asked from the very far end of the table. 

“Well, we asked some volcanologists across a few universities and they gave different opinions - one said a few months to two years and others were either less or more… nothing exact.” 

Melissa nodded at her answer and picked up her wine glass to tilt back at Mindy. “But what do you think?” 

“Oh, I’m not expert on it - I just look at pictures.” Her comment had earned her a kick under the table from Venkat but before she could expand, Melissa continued. 

“Maybe not, but you saw something I missed before, so I trust your judgement a little more than some professor in another country.” 

Mindy didn’t let the comment fester even though it hit her hard. “It looks like the surface of Olympus is expanding which happens when the heat builds up, and then there seems to be igneous rocks turning up too. I just can’t get anything from inside the volcano, but I would guess at eight to nine months maybe a year?” 

She looked back to Venkat who almost imperceptibly nodded in approval which had her shoulders drop from the quick stress she had worked up. Her eyes then went to Mark who had gone a little uncharacteristically quiet for a second before Chris reached out to slap a hand over his shoulder. 

“Bet you’re glad you aren’t waiting on AresIV now.” 

“Jesus, yeah,” Mindy caught something shift in his eyes as he took a breath, his beaming personality coming back. “At least I’d have got good data.” 

Part of the table laughed while others rolled their eyes. Mark raised brows briefly at Mindy who returned a small smile, but she could still feel an air of discomfort, as if something had touched a recent wound.

#

Alex, his wife Helena and Teddy were the first to leave after a few extra drinks post-dinner. All three had said goodnight to Mindy, although Teddy a little more briefly than Alex and Helena who also told her it was nice to have met her. The tradition soon followed where with every exiting astronaut, they each said their own goodbyes to the table and then to singular people, mostly to Rich and then herself. By midnight, there was only a small group of them left with Mark, Chris and Beth, Mitch, Venkat, and Mindy. They didn’t last another half hour before they were reaching for jackets and bags and filing out the door. Mark was away first after being teased for having his dad pick him up, followed by Chris and Beth’s taxi and Mitch who had sensibly driven to the restaurant in the first place. This left Mindy and Venkat standing outside the dark restaurant in a cool breeze waiting on their rides.

“So, that wasn't bad, right?” Venkat asked, but Mindy could sense his tone was off. He was trying to get somewhere, like this small talk was only a bridge. 

“It was nice.” Not giving anything away, she gave him a bland response and pushed a button on her phone as a fake distraction. “The crew are fun.” 

“Yeah, they go well together.” Mindy nodded and let the conversation grow quiet, but Venkat picked it up again. “Y’know, we hired Rich ‘cause of his numerical abilities but that trick with the cheque - unreal.” Venkat laughed a little, remembering the stunned silence everyone went into as Rich declared what everyone owed just from remembering menu details and orders.

“Yeah, he didn't even look at it.” Mindy expanded, laughing a little in return before going quiet again. 

“It's almost been four months since the crew landed, did you know that?” 

“I guess so, I never really thought about it though, doesn't feel like four months.” Mindy mused, although, she supposed that while it was four full months for them, she only met Mark two weeks ago and only the rest of the crew tonight. She wondered briefly why that revelation sent a flash of unease through her.

“Four months and Mark still can't go back to his apartment.” Venkat shook his head as he shuffled, kicking a few small pebbles off the sidewalk and onto the road. “Media are relentless. Some days I think Annie has it easy, just telling people things, but four months outside an apartment he doesn't go to anymore… journalists are just animals.” Still shaking his head, he crossed his arms across his chest but Mindy could tell he was trying to figure out a way to breach the topic he wanted to talk about. “Don’t tell her I said that.”

“No promises.” Mindy teased, but they both knew her threat was empty.

“Talking about animals, I can't believe you called your cat Avocado. I thought his full name was Avie. I've known you for four years and the guy you've known for two weeks finds out before me?” He rolled his eyes and threw a palm over his heart in exaggerated emotional pain. “I thought we were on good terms?” 

Mindy drew him a short look before answering. “I didn't tell him on purpose, I was panicking ‘cause the seeds were on the floor and I told him my cat knocked them over and I called him ‘Avocado’ and not ‘Avie’.” She shrugged but the look on her face showed a little impatience since she had already explained all this not even two hours ago. 

“Yeah… and those seeds. Why didn't I get any? Or Mitch? Or even the crew?” Venkat pushed and Mindy could feel the air change around them - he was touching on the area he wanted to explore and something Mindy didn’t.

“‘Cause you guys are probably greenfingered with your office plants and in-flight botany experiments, but I told him I couldn't grow anything so he gave me seeds.” She shrugged again, not realising how much she was trying to shrug her way out of this whole conversation.

“What sort of seeds are they?” 

“I don't know, he won't tell me - but Rick knows and he won’t tell me either. My mom was asking and he said it was weed - so that's about the only thing I know it's not.” Mindy stopped herself from raising her shoulders just to drop them and instead folded her arms across her chest, her gaze trained firmly on the open road as she wondered just where these taxis have gotten to.

“He met your mom?” Venkat failed to keep the surprise out his voice.

“What? No!” Mindy’s bright eyes finally met Venkat’s as her suspicion over his real agenda grew slightly. “She just asked me, I asked him for her and he said that.” a finger had uncurled from her arm to draw the connections in the air in front of her. 

“Right, I see.” Nodding in understanding, he rubbed a hand off his jawline as he visibly struggled for words. “It's just…”

“It’s just what?” 

“Aw, it's none of my business, Mindy, and you're like - how old are you?”

“Twenty seven.”

“Twenty seven, you know what's good for you by now, you don't need me looking out for you, you can see for yourself.” Sighing, he shuffled a little farther to her left as if physically stepping off from her, but she couldn't take her eyes off him.

“What d’you mean ‘looking out’ for me?” 

Venkat raised his gaze to Mindy before he tried to make her understand with a tight shrug and a wave of his hand. “Y’know… with Watney… Y’know?”

“I have no idea what you're talking about.” Delivering that with perfect sincerity earned her a snort and a laugh from her company. 

“God, Mindy, neither of you looked at anyone else all night, anytime he spoke you were in the conversation or you were the conversation.” When Mindy didn't react, he kept going. “Didn't you see Beck giving him a look - it was the same look me and Mitch were trying to give him, too, trying to tell him to tone it down - not that he did or that you even noticed how overt he was being.” Venkat had a grin on his face but it was far from amused, more just disbelief in Mindy’s blindness to it all.

“I don't think so, he was just being nice - he knows I suck at social things-”

“Mindy, trust me, short of him saying it out loud, he did just about everything he could to get your attention tonight.” Mindy, overwhelmed, was flooded with relief as she watched two taxis entered the lot. “Not that he had to, I think he's had your attention for longer than he's known you.” 

Swallowing hard against a tough wave of emotion, Mindy shook her head. “I don't think you're right, he's just been nice because he thinks I saved him.”

“You did save him! And why else would every person who was there say goodnight to you like you were part of the damn crew? ‘Cause they could tell. You think Rick Martinez is gonna miss a beat when one of his best friends is flirting his ass off? ‘Course not, that's why he was trying to embarrass Mark for three hours.”

Mindy was glad to have her hand around the taxi door handle as Venkat walked behind her to his cab. “Open your eyes, Mindy. You spent two years watching him through a telescope and now he's here you're acting blind.”

She said nothing since words had all but vanished from her mind as she threw her bag, jacket and phone into the taxi before her.

“Hey, look, I'm not trying to be hard on you but you weren't picking it up and I promise it was really damn obvious to everyone else.” She nodded silently to what he said, recognising that maybe she was trying not to see it in a certain light but that was her issue to deal with. “You just need to decide if you wanna do something about it and put him out his misery. He can only hang on your every word for so long.” 

She nodded again, trying to work through this incredibly dense load of information. 

“Don't get worked up over it, just think it through.” His tone was softer now. It was back to the familiar Venkat she saw most mornings going into work and that wave of comfort had her looking over to him as he climbed in his taxi. “See you tomorrow, okay?”

“Yeah, tomorrow.” 

“Oh, and Mindy -” She looked up, peering over the roof of the cab. “When he introduced you and had his hand on your shoulder? You looked like a good pair, s’all I’m saying.” 

She smiled at him out of politeness but it was small and pursed before she slid into the taxi, trying not to let all this get the better of her and let a few tears escape before she got home.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So this chapters a little bit longer, but I didn't want to split one event up. thanks for reading though! if you've got to chapter 8 you deserve an actual medal. 
> 
> shameless self plug: come get me at greglet.tumblr.com and tell me everything you think about this mess


	9. Chapter 9

It wasn’t just overwhelming, it was impossible too. She felt stupid, she felt like she was in high school and this was just a prank or joke made to embarrass her. She didn’t want to know about it, she wanted to remove herself from this mess and pretend like Venkat never ruined her night. At least, that’s how Mindy was seeing it now; ruined. She knew he didn’t mean to take a nice night out away from her but dumping all this on her at the last second did exactly that. She briefly wondered if she would’ve been better off knowing earlier in the night - at least that way she could’ve kept her eyes peeled for anything that Venkat was talking about… or maybe not knowing at all. Then again, he accused her of being blind when maybe she had just been choosing not to see it. 

Mindy wasn’t lacking in self worth, she didn’t have deep seated issues with that - she knew she was good at her job, smart, she felt pretty when she made an effort and could be confident within groups of people she already knew. But in groups that she didn’t know or wasn’t sure of, she was meek, quiet, shy and submissive in conversation. But this situation had her feeling disjointed, she wasn’t sure what she was. She was comfortable around Mark, she could joke with him and the night she was out with him before now was enjoyable and easy. When he brought her seeds she was confident enough with him to warn him she didn’t think she could manage it, that they’d be dead in hours, but he insisted and she caved under his radiating reassurance. It wasn’t reassurance that he’d be there even though he would be, it was a gentle reassurance that told her she could do it if she tried. She had appreciated that as soon as she felt it, like he believed in her ability, not that she would need him as a safety net. 

But this was still Mark Watney, universally famous botanist and engineer. He was more than that of course, he was trapped on Mars for two years, he was the man with the hopes of the world who colonised Mars, first man to live on Mars for over twenty, fifty, seventy, one hundred days, a year, a year and a half, two years, two years and counting, first man to ‘fly’ free in space, first, first, first and of course, his most prominent title, Martian Hero. She was Mindy Park, mechanical engineer and mover-of-satellites and… cat owner. It was definitely impossible. 

But despite all that, she couldn’t deny she knew him personally, beyond titles earned and given by media. And maybe she enjoyed his outlook on life - that survivor in him. She held onto it while he was hundreds of thousands of miles away, hoping he’d make it when she felt so helpless towards him. All she could do was watch and hope, to any god that was listening, that he’d survive on a barren planet long enough to escape it and come home. When he did, words couldn’t express the level of relief. The stress that lifted from her shoulders when Commander Lewis radioed to tell NASA she had Watney was visible. So were her tears. 

Venkat was right in one thing - it was almost four months since the crew had landed, but that time frame didn’t really affect Mindy. What did affect Mindy was the three years of the four year mission she had been watching like a hawk. Watching Mark every minute of every day as if he might disappear into the sand like it was first thought he did. So three years of her life had been spent revolving around Mark, around what he was writing for her in the sand and hoping he’d be okay at the end of his Sol and the start of the next. What else affected Mindy was the past fortnight-worth of interactions with Mark. She didn’t want to think about the three months she wasted in avoiding him, hoping she would melt into the background never to be found by him or the crew. She didn’t want their praise, she didn’t feel like she’d actually done anything to earn it - she had sat on her ass and looked at pictures for three years, why should she be noticed over someone like Rich Purnell or Bruce Ng who both worked physically to bring Mark back. 

Commander Lewis’ comment didn’t help - ‘you saw something I missed before’ - while it might have been true, circumstances must surely come into play. It wasn’t Commander Lewis’ fault she never saw Mark in the sand, how could she with the storm raging and Mark’s suit calling him dead? And for Mindy, she didn’t even see Mark, she saw evidence of him being alive a while later - still not enough to warrant any praise in her books. 

This all meant that what she had seen over the last couple of years of her working life and the past couple of weeks of her social life was just average and luck. She had done her job, nothing more. And on her nights out she had enjoyed them, nothing more. She hadn’t been mindful when she was with Mark, it hadn’t been conscious acts - she hadn’t been _purposefully_ flirting. 

The thought sent her hands to her head, closing her eyes in a mixture of embarrassment and regret. 

“You alright, sweetheart? If you’re gonna puke, I’ll stop-” The taxi driver from the front seat was obviously more worried about his interior than his passenger, but she managed to shake her head and sit up.

“No, I’m fine,” It didn’t even sound believable to her and the look she got from the driver confirmed that he didn’t believe her either. “Just stressed.” Which wasn’t untrue and it satisfied the driver enough to speed up a little at the change of the lights. 

When she got home, she didn’t waste time in flicking on the lights. She didn’t feel like seeing herself in the reflection of shiny kitchen appliances when she went for a glass for water, she just wanted to sit in the dark and quiet and go over what had happened. An automatic hand went out for Avocado who was sitting on her coffee table as she wandered mindlessly to her couch. He ran himself under her fingers and hopped up beside her , sitting in wait to be pet in the crook of her knees. She had curled up in the corner of the couch with her left hand gently rubbing at Avocado’s neck, too distracted by her thoughts to realise the glass of water she had just poured was still sitting at the sink. 

Maybe she had been wrong before, maybe she had been actively flirting and just not realising it. That’s what Venkat had said, that it was obvious. Or at least obvious from Mark’s end. Had she really not picked up on it? She had started to run through the night, starting from that hand on her shoulder. She had looked up at him then while he had told the crew to be nice to her - but that was innocent. She knew that the human eye follows noise and motions and he had come from behind her and started to talk, it was just reaction. As for the rest of the night, she felt she could say the same. He was such a conversationalist that there was barely anywhere else to look the whole night, and of course, Rich was sitting directly by her side, it was awkward to turn to him without getting a crick in her neck. 

Sighing, she rolled her head into the couch, asking herself why it mattered so much to go through these events. It didn’t, not really, since what happened had happened and she trusted Venkat enough to tell her the truth (even if it has upset her). If it was the truth she now had another issue on her hands and that was what to do with the information. Standing outside the restaurant earlier Venkat had mentioned how it had been four months since the crew touched down and Mindy realised it had only been two weeks since she had even met Mark, but the revelation only brought a tinge of something distinctly negative to her, something close to a shiver of doubt. Her first excuse for not wanting to see Mark when it was possible was that it was too soon and maybe it would be bad of her to lean on the same excuse, but that’s how it felt. It was too soon. Two weeks wasn’t enough to make anything of a lightly placed hand, unkind comments from Rick and an info-dump from Venkat. 

Still, a small voice in her head told her that that’s what dating was for - to get to know someone better - but the thought made her stomach churn. Mark was working his way up to being a good friend and she didn’t want to jeopardise that, plus she knew fine well that it’s better to have a friend first and anything else second. An indulgent second thought had her conceding it could be all too easy for her to make that jump when she was ready since she was already comfortable around him - but not yet, that much she was sure. Just not yet. 

Knowing she couldn’t sleep on her couch without regretting it on the morning, she shifted off and made her way to bed. She hadn’t quite convinced herself that ‘too soon’ was a good enough excuse and decided to mutter it to herself as she busied with her nightly routines. Too soon to actively pursue someone that she wouldn’t have ever dreamed of being on the same social level of, too soon to be pursuing someone she only met two weeks ago, too soon to be going out with someone who she had been viewing through a telescope for years on end, too soon to be dating someone who brought her seeds - seeds. Reminded of her delicate seedlings, she padded back through to her kitchen to use the glass of water she poured for herself for her seeds. Even in the dark she could see they hadn’t breached the soil yet and maybe that was a good thing. She found a strange connection to them - too soon for them to be stretching out just as she felt the same. 

She supposed, as she pulled back her covers and slid into bed, that it didn’t mean no, it didn’t mean never, it just meant not right now. It might be echoing her excuse from three months ago but she felt it was more than fitting the more she had it on her mind. How she would act or face Mark with her mind made up was something to deal with later, but right now it was pushing two and she still had to be in work for nine.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> a bit shorter this time. ngl this was a bit of a quick decision for her to say no (for now) cause i realised that a lot less time had passed than i had thought (bc i can't keep track of my own writing what can i say i'm terrible). still, not to worry! it'll happen


	10. Chapter 10

It hadn’t been a good night. Despite talking herself through what had happened, what Venkat had said and how she had mostly felt about it, she still woke up only two hours after getting to bed with a thick coat of unease resting on her mind. She couldn’t understand that while she felt the mental discomfort of something not agreeing with her, she was feeling as awake as she would have been if she woke at eight. Not wanting to lie down when she knew she wouldn’t fall back asleep, she grumpily threw her covers off herself and stomped to her couch. Glancing to the small clock on the almost-morning news to confirm, with a roll of her eyes, that she was on Mars time. 

Of course, with a turbulent, late night out and a sleep that could accurately be called a catnap, she couldn’t really be surprised her sleep schedule had been upset enough to revert back to over a full year ago. Yet even so, she wanted to blame it on the fact that it was because of the stress of work, her seeds, the dinner, and all those people, then Venkat at the end and not because all those stresses had the same source: Mark. Picking up her phone from the side of a cushion where it had obviously slid out the back of her jeans last night, she pushed the home button to find a couple of unanswered messages.

[23:11:09] stil out? txt me wn u get home unlss its afer 1 bu text me in the morn. momxxxx

The bad spelling and the four x’s told her her mom had already taken her glasses off for the night and by now, she’d be asleep. Mindy thought about replying, but sending her anything at this time would just cause her mom to worry about her health again. Flicking to the next message she didn’t look at it long before backing out of the thread.

[01:29:11] plus, hes’ good looking too, you cant say he’s not. if i can admit it, so can yu.

She appreciated Venkat trying to be humorously kind to her after harshly dumping far too much on her shoulders outside the restaurant last night, but he had obviously had more than enough to drink to make his fingers _that_ loose. That would be a text neither of them would be bringing up for a while. Even if it wasn't wrong.

Flicking to the next one down, her eyes glanced to the time it was sent at and was a little surprised that it was only twenty minutes ago. Mark was either still awake from last night or on Mars time himself.

[03:46:43] if youre up, put on the local news.

Palming around herself for her remote, she flicked from the national news to the local one and sat for a bit, watching a segment on the sewage works.

[04:14:22] Sewage?

[04:15:01] no! you missed it. it’ll come round again, keep watching.

[04:15:35] i didn’t expect you to be up even though i text you - mars time?

Doing as he suggested, she kept her eyes on the news until they moved on to a message break. 

[04:21:11] Mars time. 

She realised her messages weren’t exactly lengthy or even good conversation, but she was still struggling about where to stand with him. She was more than aware that texting someone at four in the morning was not the way to tell them that you weren’t fit for anything beyond friends right now (‘but please don’t discount me completely’ said a quiet voice trailing on the end of her thought). She was still a little annoyed at herself for feeling like she was in a corner when it wasn’t like he had ever asked her out or even hinted at anything that she noticed herself. It was still all hearsay and she wasn’t taking it well. She felt a mess, she felt confused and she felt a little hungry at the pop tart commercial which had her up and pawing through her cupboards for her own frosted strawberry packs. With two heated and on a plate with a glass of water, she made it back to her couch for the start of the next quarter of news that had her captivated from the first lazily constructed line.

_"Houston, we have a party! Last night, the AresIII crew and some special NASA guests were spotted at a local restaurant. It’s been four months since the crew landed after the world’s most daring rescue mission of Botanist and Engineer, Mark Watney, and it seems being packed into a rocket wasn’t enough time together for the crew!"_

_"Another diner, named as local citizen Mike Porter, caught a few glimpses of the patrons from his table. Seen here, we can make out a few faces. It would seem that Venkat Kapoor, Mars Mission Director was present, as was Annie Montrose - NASA’s PR ‘woman-in-the-know’, and most famously, NASA director, Teddy Sanders."_

_"Apart from them, it seemed spouses were present of the crew and that rumours of Chris Beck and Beth Johanssen are only fueled by this seating arrangement. What else was new was the presence of the latest NASA employee to be getting her name out there, Miss Mindy Park. She was seen standing under the arm of Martian Hero Watney, however our source, Mr Porter, said that it wasn’t for long and didn’t happen again."_

_"Well, that’s interesting Stephanie."_

_"You think, Robert? Could be nothing."_

_"Could be everything, why else would she be there? And it’s been four months and we still can’t confirm Chris and Beth, maybe this is something else we need to be keeping an eye on."_

_"Talking about keeping an eye on things, let's take a look at this eighty-four year old woman who got her sight back after tripping over her own dog-"_

She had no idea what to make of that except that she had accidentally got herself on local news. Still, how they even knew who she was was a mystery - the article Venkat had posted didn’t have her face on it… unless the ‘source’ had overheard - she had been called upon a few times during the night. This sort of thing didn’t happen to her though, and the whole idea that she had been in the middle of enough ‘social drama’ to be on the news was absurd. They had been out for dinner and who really cared? 

Mindy answered her own question with a quiet mutter of ‘the world cares’. She was here when it was all every news outlet would talk about, every magazine, every government, every broadcasting segment across the world had something to say about it and it was far from over. Mark Watney would be public domain for the rest of documented history and she was actually considering distancing herself from him. That was wrong. He didn't deserve that. If she wanted a friend from him then she could be a friend _to_ him, that was only fair. Now she was just disappointed in herself for even thinking it would’ve been okay to create distance in the first place. 

Above that, she was a little surprised to feel a lick of defensive pride over the newscaster’s brush off of why she would even be at that table. Maybe she didn’t have a fancy title, but at twenty seven, head of Martian satellites wasn’t a disappointment. And maybe she wasn’t a real manager of anything or anyone, and that Venkat was still seven levels above her, but if she could hold her water at a dinner with all those people, then that newscaster could keep his plainly offensive opinion to himself. Thinking how any therapist would have a field day with her and her rapidly changing emotions, she realised she hadn’t text Mark back since the start of the news.

[04:46:12] Poor Mitch and Rich, completely forgotten about. And I don’t know how they got my name?

[04:46:58] that's what I thought. probably that guy just overheard - probably listening to everything else too.

[04:47:20] I can’t believe it made the news though, it was just dinner

[04:48:18] but since the crew was there, it’s news. it might break national by sunrise.

[04:48:55] For being out for dinner?

[04:49:39] it’s unlikely, but it wouldn’t be the first time something stupid has broke national.

She really hoped it wouldn’t. It was one thing to tell her mom that she was on the local news but another to tell her she was on the national news - and for being ‘under Mark’s arm’. Her mom would explode, even if Mindy tried to deny it. Mindy was finding it to be such an incredibly fickle situation, especially for herself. Everyone around her seemed to be progressing in a linear way except her. Even Venkat’s thoughts about her and Mark had been linear, growing towards a singular conclusion while she had been back and forth for what felt like an age. Their first night out still felt like a dream in her mind - a little foggy from the alcohol and so easy she couldn’t be sure she didn’t make parts up. It was then she was maybe lenient to the idea of them together - or at least, it was the first time she had thought about it. Then, the seeds and Venkat’s interested eyebrow had prompted her to hit the brakes on something she had only been thinking about. And now she was so firmly in the middle, just waiting for something or someone else to tip her scales. She sighed as she looked back to her phone from staring off into the sunrise as her thoughts whirred around her head. 

[04:50:18] I can’t remember seeing anything, I think you’ve got away with it.

[04:52:39] about a week or so after i got back i tried to go back to my apartment and got caught. then i got caught trying to sneak out the fire escape. and since my female neighbour helped me, she got dragged into it for a week until she started walking about with her ring finger up and her husband on her arm.

[04:53:10] and thanks for assuming it was me that did something stupid

[04:54:03] A week after you guys got back my mom and I went away for a bit, I must’ve missed it.  
[04:54:32] Well, I wouldn’t have thought it was Commander Lewis.

[04:54:49] yeah, she wouldn’t have been fuckin caught. 

[04:55:17] And after last night, she’d probably let you call her melissa.

[04:55:49] I would never! Even if she said I could herself, I would still call her Commander Lewis.

[04:56:34] same.

[04:58:10] but she left me on mars so i use it to be cold.

[04:58:18] Mark!!

[04:58:33] i’m just kidding, she knows i call her CL cause i’m scared of her.

[04:59:00] You should be.

Mindy grew less attentive to the conversation after Avocado grew sick of not having attention. Stepping over her legs, he put his paws on her chest and meowed in her face until she put her phone aside to attend to him. 

“Y’know, this time next week you’ll be going in your box.” She raised her brows and nodded as he watched her. She was well aware how much he only ever tolerated the cat box, but she had promised her mom she’d bring Avocado on her trip home. Mindy had considered driving for about four minutes until she realised that four and a half hours on a flight equated to thirty five hours in a car and that would not be fun. So she had applied for holiday time, booked her flights, told her mom and made sure Avocado could still fly in his box on her lap and not in the hold. Maybe she was a bit ahead of herself with her small suitcase looked out from under her bed and lying opened on her floor, but her middle name was ‘(Sometimes) Prepared’ and she liked to live up to it. 

As the news rolled round to spit out the headlines again, she turned it off and lifted Avocado onto the floor. Deciding that now was as good a time as any to get started for the day, she went to shower and fix her hair out for work. She had taken her time so as to waste it but by the time she was completely unable to find anything else to tinker with on her person, it was still only six which left her two hours before she even had to leave for work - and she’d still be early. 

Grabbing her phone to put it on charge, she felt a brief surge of popularity with three unanswered text messages and a missed call. Exploring a little further to find one of the messages was from her service provider and another from a local pizza place, her ego subsided. She was still a little surprised to find the missed call was from her mom, but not surprised (maybe a little pleased) to see another message from Mark. She ignored the message for now, deciding to phone her mom back. As it rang, she debated on telling her about being on the news, but if it did go national her mom would be giving her into trouble for not telling her sooner… but if it didn’t break national, it would never be mentioned again probably. 

The conversation started immediately with her mom asking about her night out and Mindy didn’t even get to ask why her mom was up so early before she was imparting details. 

“Well, it was nice, the crew are really nice. Rick Martinez is really friendly, I talked to him most I think.” 

“What about Commander Lewis? She always seems so in control and on top of things, maybe a little serious.”

“Oh, she was great, they’re all really great people.” 

“And what about Beck and Beth? Y’know I don’t know why the men get called by their surnames and Beth gets called ‘Beth’ in the media… - but are they together? ‘Cause you know no one can confirm it-”

“Mom! I’m not gonna tell you that, that’s their lives and you’d just gossip about it to Marlene and she’d tell her neighbours and it’d be out the street and on the news before tonight!” There was a small impatient sigh on the other end of the phone, but Mindy felt too guilty to divulge anything - besides, it wasn’t like they were overt about anything, even if they did leave together and he had his arm over her shoulder as they did. “Besides, there wasn’t anything obvious, so I don’t even know, okay?”

“Mindy, you were always so clueless about that stuff, you could never see anything unless someone else pointed it out to you!” Her mom sighed again and moved on. “And Mr Kapoor was there?” 

“Yep, Venkat was there too, he was sitting beside me.”

“He seems like such a nice man, I’m glad he’s your boss.” Even though Mindy had explained several times that while Venkat was _a_ boss, he wasn’t her boss _directly_. He was still seven levels above her and she had department bosses too, but her mom rarely asked about those. 

“And Mark, how was he?” There was that tone of fake-fake interest again. It was as if her mom was acting interested for the sake of being interested about her night in general and not being honest that she was only interested because Mindy and Mark seemed to be getting closer. 

“Fine.” Her stilted answer only piqued her mom’s interest more, even if she didn’t say anything and just urged Mindy forward with a gentle ‘mhm?’ “He told everyone I called Avocado ‘Avocado’ so that was great.” 

Her mom laughed, knowing full well that Mindy never usually divulged the full name of her cat so as to avoid situations exactly like that one. Even his name tag called him ‘Avie’. “I told you at the time to give him another name, it’s your own fault. How did he find out in the first place?” 

“Avie spilled my seeds through the week and I had to text Mark to make sure they’d be okay after spending time on the floor and it just came out before I noticed.” 

“In a text, huh?” Mindy shut her eyes and gritted her teeth - she didn’t mean to let on that she had his number or for as long as her seeds had been attacked. 

“Mom, don’t make it weird, it’s not like that, okay?” It took a bit of convincing to lower her mom’s voice since she usually went up four octaves when something of this topic came up, but eventually she let it go and Mindy managed to talk about getting ready for work and getting Avocado ready for his journey in the cat box. By the time they had finished discussing some loose plans for Mindy’s trip back home next week she had almost forgot she had another message from Mark.

[05:32:14] these poptart commercials are making me hungry - you wanna meet for breakfast?

[06:15:49] sorry, I ate. wanna meet for coffee? 

[06:48:42] Sorry! I showered and called my mom, but I could do coffee if you don’t mind me asking if we can meet closer to nasa since I still have to go to work.

[06:53:12] awesome, do you know where dot coffee is?

[06:54:02] I think so. Next to gulfgate mall, right?

[06:54:33] that’s the one. see you in a bit.

She didn’t have time to think about it, only the time to grab a jacket in response to the greying skies, her work bag full of papers and folders, rub a quick hand over Avocado and leave. Then, run back inside to water her seeds before leaving again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sorry this took so long, i spent almost that whole time debating the end of this chapter. also, thanks to everyone who followed me on tumblr! (@greglet). now come talk to me so we can discuss everything martian related and beyond. aaalso, next chapter is definitely not gonna take as long as this one since i already have 98% of it written out.


	11. Chapter 11

She was sure that she had beat Mark to the coffee shop since a quick look inside showed only a couple of people dotted around and none of which were sitting themselves. She stood outside, her heavy work bag slung over one shoulder, her rain jacket hanging over her arm and her thumbnail picking apart her phone cover as she tried to keep that tingle of nerves out her stomach. This was the third time out of four meetings with Mark that she had these nerves and she knew that as soon as he got here and started the conversation she’d be fine, but knowing that didn’t do anything for her now. So her phone cover continued to pay the price as she stripped bits of rubber from it and flicked them into the trash can beside her.

Despite the nerves, she would admit to being a little excited. This was well outside her regular routine yet she didn’t feel outside her comfort zone, just like she was doing something nice to start off her day a bit differently. Maybe it would become a habit on Mars Time days. The small private smile that had tugged at her lips was replaced by a more open one as a taxi drew up and Mark stepped out. She didn’t mean to squint or for her brow to dip in confusion - which he definitely caught - as the taxi sped off to it’s next call. 

“What?” Mark asked shortly, like he knew the answer. 

“Nice hat?” Mindy returned, trying to purse her lips hard enough to stop her from laughing. Mark rolled his eyes and took it off, stuffing it as much as he could into a back pocket. 

“I only thought it might, y’know, help a bit - but if it’s just gonna make people laugh then fuck it, the last thing I need is for the world to start laughin’ at me.” He shook his head as he walked in step with Mindy before pushing the door open for her. 

“Well, maybe it would’ve worked. It’s just what it says makes it funny.” Mindy tried to point out that perhaps ‘what happens on the boat, stays on the boat’ isn’t a good ‘incognito hat’. 

“It’s the only one I could find! Not my fault my mom doesn’t know what to buy my dad at Christmas.” 

They were served quickly and it didn’t seem like the staff had clicked to who Mark was, even when he handed over a card to pay for two coffees despite Mindy having cash that was waved away. More than that, it was clear to Mindy he was holding back today. He didn’t touch her when he saw her like he sometimes does, he was keeping his distance and was either a step behind, beside or in front of her. It was odd, but maybe she was just making something out of nothing. 

“No way, I asked you to meet me, that means I’m payin’, besides, there was a reason for getting you here.” The sudden admission had a slice of worry running through Mindy - something Mark had caught onto almost as soon as it happened. “Nothin’ bad! I’ll tell you when we sit, but you gotta stop panicking.” 

She sighed, adjusted her bag strap and wandered towards a booth next to a window but Mark nodded towards one against the other wall. As she threw her bag along her side of the seat she didn’t want to think about the clatter it made or the fact that she probably just bent about thirty pages of important documents, and instead directed her attention to stirring her coffee as Mark added sugar to his. 

“Uh, I wanted to apologise and I didn’t want to do it in a text.”

“Apologise?” She wasn't expecting this of all the things that had ran through her head. “What for?”

“Those bastards on the news saying you didn't have a reason to be there last night.” He flipped his hand and sighed harshly. “I almost phoned them up but I didn't want to make it worse ‘cause you had a reason to be there and it wasn't because of me.” 

There was a moment she caught that he looked almost furious about it before he blinked and his eyes softened back to apology. Still, she couldn't help but disagree a little. 

“It kinda was.” Looking slyly at him before glancing towards her coffee. “I mean, if I hadn't seen you I wouldn't have been there -” 

“But-”

“ _But_ , yes it was annoying.” And it had been, she wouldn't deny that, yet it wasn’t for the reason he was thinking, or at least, not exactly. “Look, Mark, it was only annoying because my reason for being at that table was _because_ of you, not _for_ of you… if that makes sense?” She squinted at him again before shaking her head. “More like, it isn’t an insult to be seen with you, or for it to be pointed out, it was just frustrating the newscasters didn’t see me as anything more.” 

He caught her eyes and something flickered in his as if he wanted to pick up on what she said, but found a reason not to and instead nodded like he agreed before his gaze dropped to his coffee. He tried to smile, but it wasn’t his usual light-up-the-conversation smile, it was tight, pursed and followed by a sigh. “It’s the same for Lewis and Johanssen, they get treated differently from us in interviews and in the media, fuck, it winds me up so much.” 

“Well, thanks for being annoyed at it, but really, it’s not worth it.” Taking a sip of her coffee, she slouched back against the cushioned bench and crossed her legs. His brow had relaxed and his shoulders seemed to have dropped from when he started his unnecessary apology, making her think that his odd stand-offish and non-Mark behaviour from earlier had only been because of this. “I’ll probably never be on the news again either, so there goes my hundred and twenty seconds of fame.” 

Mark smirked a little at that. “And how did your mom react to you being on the news for _that_.” Referencing it as if it was something dirty, he didn’t catch Mindy’s look of sudden realisation in the roll of his eyes. 

“I forgot to tell her - she was too busy asking me about the night out that I even forgot it was on the news!” A hand went to her forehead in panic as she considered texting her mom right now to tell her. “Shit, I really hope it doesn’t break national now or she’ll be over here by tonight and I’ll have wasted four hundred dollars on plane tickets.” She sighed at the thought, still debating whether or not to fish her phone out her bag and just get it over with or leave it in case she was right and that it never breaks national.

“Oh, you’re going home soon?” 

“Yeah, this time next week I’ll be on my flight to Seattle - only for the week.” And the thought of not being packed was now starting to worry her. “I keep thinking it’s farther away than it is, but it’s really soon.”

“Avocado goin’ with you?” 

“Yeah, my mom’s allergic but she insists I bring him and then all she does is cry and sneeze and I gotta lock him in my room - _every time_.” He laughed and rested back against his seat, his mug of coffee in his hand. 

“I’m going back to Chicago on Monday. They weren’t gonna let me go but they agreed that since we were driving and not flying, it’d be fine.” 

“Oh, really? Why is that? Surely they can’t stop you from flying after all the time you spent in space.” She knew there was a restriction on their driving for a while and she wasn’t sure how long that was for but she couldn’t imagine a restriction on flights - especially for Alex Vogel needing to get back home to Germany. 

“Oh, no, they just didn’t want to cause a fuss at the airport with me being the centre of attention everywhere I go.” Mindy winced in apology. She had only been given the briefest insight of what it must be like not to be able to go anywhere without people trying to find out why and what you were up to and she didn’t appreciate it. “Plus, if they knew I was going back to Chicago, could you imagine the press at the other side? It’s easier to drive back and not let anyone see me on the way.”

“That’s a long drive.” Mindy wasn’t sure what to say. She was sure any apology or empathic response she gave would’ve been heard before or felt disingenuous. 

“Yeah, almost twenty hours and my parent’s aren’t really looking forward to it since I can’t chip in yet, but they’ll be glad to get home.” He shrugged and took another sip of coffee. “So, uh, don’t tell anyone.” 

The friendly, open, definitely hinting at mischief, smile had found its way back to his lips and Mindy nodded with a small smirk - her lips were sealed. 

“But I think they’re gonna sell the house they had here ‘cause they only bought it so I had somewhere to go when I got back and we could spend time together, but since we’re going back to Chicago for a while they don’t need it.” ‘For a while’ had caught Mindy’s attention with the smallest droplet of something that wasn’t happy at the idea. “But it means that when I come back to work I’m gonna need a new place since my old one is definitely a no-go.” 

“How long are you going home for?” She didn’t want to ask that question, she wanted to ask something that wouldn’t sound tinged with a hidden meaning, but it came out before she could stop it.

“Not long, maybe a month - or as long as it takes the press to catch on.” Mindy nodded along, she supposed he had to come back to work eventually, and while she wanted to know how long of a break he had off, she didn’t want to pry too much. “Or, realistically, maybe longer - I need to get back here and find another apartment but only while I have somewhere to stay, which will be in Chicago.” He rubbed a hand over his jaw at the idea of the back and forth he’ll be having to pull and Mindy couldn’t help but feel even more sorry for him. “Good news is, the Cubs are in it to win it this time for sure, so I’ll probably be back after they win the series.” 

“So, I’ll never see you again, then?” Her eyes sparkled with her jibe as Mark recoiled in playful-hurt. 

“Jesus, you’re as bad as Martinez! Y’know what?” He went fishing for his wallet and slapped ten dollars on the table. “I bet you ten dollars they win.” 

“Fine, you’re on, I’ll put in ten as well - If the Cubs win you get twenty, but if the Mariners get further than the Cubs, I win.” Mark squinted at Mindy and asked a passing waitress for her pen.

“You’re on.” He said as he wrote ‘Cubs V Mariners’ at the top of his ten. “If you win, you’re getting this exact ten.”

“Should have just written ‘for Mindy’ on it.” Her nonchalant tone had him scoffing as she took the pen from him and found the rejected ten dollars from earlier that she had crumpled in her pocket. “What should I write on mine? ‘Spend when Mark loses’?” Raising her brows at him, he laughed at her and put his head in his hands. 

“Probably!” He mumbled from behind his palms. “No, no, write ‘Mark’s money’ because I have total faith in the Cubs, okay?” 

“Mm…” Her careful writing almost filled the top margin before she dropped the pen to the table and picked up the note to blow the ink dry. “‘Captain Mark’s hopeful cash’ - I was going to say ‘Captain Blondebeard’ but I think I would’ve ran out of space.” 

“Captain Mark works just as well, really.” A sly smirked worked into a grin as he picked the pen back up and added ‘First Mate Mindy’s’ on the top line in writing that was too used to labelling samples. “Alright, deal, I’ll be taking that off you in November, then.” 

“Definitely.” Raising her brow in sarcasm, he only shook his head at her. Mindy hadn’t realised just how much she had slipped from being nervous to being so easily comfortable around him until now. It was only a brief moment that the conversation lulled but it wasn’t stilted or awkward, it was just at rest which is how she felt being around him - just at rest. With most of her friends either back in Washington or somewhere else across the globe and her inability to stay in contact with people from work outside those working hours, she really did appreciate Mark’s determination to stay in her life even if he wasn’t conscious of doing it. He was a good person, a good friend and such a strong force of comfort and ease that she was almost jealous of herself for knowing him. “Even if those newscasters were right and I didn’t have any reason to be there last night except because I knew you, I’m still glad I was there, so, thanks for inviting me.” 

He waved off her thanks and sat his mug down on the table. “You shouldn’t be thanking me, Mindy.” 

She felt the same way about him so his comment was met with a shrug and a long sip of her now lukewarm coffee. 

“Who’s taking care of your seeds? You can’t be taking them with you?” She didn’t blame him for changing the subject - on the topic of who should thank who, they’d always be at an impasse. 

“Well, I already asked my neighbour - she looks after Avie a lot so a plant was no trouble for her.” Feeling like she knew the answer for a test, she adjusted on her seat with a proud lift of her head. “See, I’m getting better at this plant stuff, got a babysitter and everything.” 

“Yeah, but you have to stop calling it ‘plant stuff’ if you want to be taken seriously in the field.” His playful smirk was reactive and bloomed a smile across her lips. 

“I guess I’ll never make it as a botanist then.” Mark couldn’t keep himself from snorting at the obviously ludicrous idea but Mindy kicked at his foot under the table, offended. “Hey! I’m not that bad, they’re still alive.” 

“Not if your cat sees to them first.” He muttered almost under his breath.

“You said they could fight an avocado - that’s not my fault if you’re wrong!” 

“He’s your cat, you’re responsible for what he maims or kills!” 

“He’s a cat! He does what he likes-” Mindy scrambled to catch the mug of coffee her hand had hit in the moment of trying to visually display how a cat is a cat and does not abide by human logic. Managing to steady it before the last quarter sloshed over the rim, she looked disapprovingly at Mark and rubbed a few stray droplets off her fingers with a napkin. “That was your fault.” 

“My fault you almost spilled your coffee?” He asked, a brow perked in his blatant disbelief in her argument.

“Yes - you got me wound up.” Pushing a finger to adjust her glasses while he tutted at her, she realised for a second time just how calm she felt with him - despite being wound up by him in the moment. It was an overall calm and one that seemed to be emitted from Mark and pulled in by Mindy. She seemed to feed on it like a plant in the sun. It had a blanket effect on her and she knew she would miss it when he left since she could easily slip into a placid state and sit with him for the rest of her day, just being happily unaware of the outside world with good conversation and the beginnings of a good friend. Except, she still had work to get to and she hadn’t checked the time since she stepped in the diner. Her stillness was violently interrupted as she turned to check the clock above the coffee bar and when she read it as twenty past three in the afternoon she had the briefest feeling of sickening fear before grabbing for her phone for the right time. “Oh shit- Mark, I’m gonna be late if I don’t leave right now.” 

Grabbing her things, she edged her way out the booth as quick as she could and jogged to the door with him behind her. 

“Mindy, I’m sorry, I totally forgot you had work.” Pushing a flat palm to the door above her head to open it for her, she stepped through without looking digging for her car keys out her bag. 

“Me too, and if Venkat catches me, I’ll never hear the end of it.” She muttered to herself as she found her keys. 

“Just blame me if he does.” 

“That’d be the last thing I’d tell him.” After what Venkat dumped on her, telling him she met with Mark only hours later for coffee when they both woke up on Mars Time after being insinuated as a “thing” on local news - she could almost picture Venkat and her mom exploding together. 

“I’m a perfect excuse, why wouldn’t you use me?” 

“I really have to go.” That was one thing Mindy didn’t want to start on, especially not now but realistically not for a while. She was happy that they were growing as friends and she couldn’t say that she had mindfully flirted with him yet. She just hoped he saw it in the same light she did. For now, at least.

“Okay, okay.” Holding out open palms as an invitation for a hug, she stepped towards him, placing a hand on one of his shoulders as she briefly rested her chin on his other. It might have only been a moment, but the weight of his hands on her back felt warm and safe. As she stepped back, she promised Venkat wouldn’t be getting even a whiff of this. 

“Thanks - for the coffee and the seeds and suggesting to meet.” She was practically jogging across the lot to her car, fiddling with unlock buttons and throwing her bag, with more regret, onto the passenger side. “And have a safe trip home!” She called as she slid into her car and slammed the door behind her before she realised she was about to abandon Mark in the middle of nowhere without the chance at a ride. As she pulled up to the sidewalk, she pushed down the window and shouted over. “Do you need a lift or something?”

“What? No! I’m going into Houston - you go to work, go!” He urged her off with a push of his hand as she quickly waved at him and sped out the lot. She had a twenty minute drive to make in thirteen minutes and her nice morning was now chaos. 

#

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> See I told you the next bit would be soon. And it's literally just Mark and Mindy having an uninterrupted conversation for a while. Also thanks to everyone who comments on this bc you're so kind and lovely and every comment is perfect and full of reasons to keep writing more (which I will) ♡


	12. Chapter 12

Throwing herself into Mission Control, it was the loudest entrance she had ever made as her run through the corridors had now come to a halt. She flicked her hair out her eyes with a shake of her head, hauled her bag onto her shoulder and walked carefully to her desk, trying not to give away that she was dangerously breathless as she sank into her chair. She put her head on her desk and closed her eyes, glad for Mission Control being so dark all the time, as she tried to regain some breath. She had made it. She had no idea how she managed to drive to NASA and swipe in in thirteen minutes, just as it turned exactly nine o'clock. That was what she got for getting lost in the encompassing agreeableness of Mark Watney at eight in the morning. 

Lifting her head from her desk, she logged onto her station and started to fish papers out her bag to flatten them under heavy manuals she had sitting in piles under her desk. She was fortunate that despite being thrown, with vigour, twice into chairs, that the papers were not folded too much. They were supposed to be part of her project and were full of satellite images of Olympus Mons - things she could print out again but didn’t really want to waste the paper on. 

Despite the sudden bout of chaos, she had settled in by half past and was well into her tasks for the day when Venkat had turned up. Mindy didn’t notice him immediately as he stopped to check in with other staff members, but he eventually made his way over and interrupted her work flow by knocking on her desk as if it was a door to an office. 

“Mindy, how’s your head this morning?” A question obviously in reference to his own regrets but one Mindy could happily shunt. 

“Fine - I didn’t actually drink that much last night.” She said, a proud smile sitting at her lips.

“Oh, me either, really.” He lied as he rested against her desk.

“So if I dropped this manual on my desk right now you wouldn’t mind?” Her hand wandered across her desk to the seven hundred page hardback lying on top of her papers when Venkat’s hand came to sit on hers.

“Don’t.” 

She smirked, glad in winning the battle of the hangovers but she was still waiting for a reason for Venkat showing up since he never came without one. “So, something wrong?”

“Oh, nothing’s wrong. I just wanted to see why you got in so late.” Caught. Venkat looked smug as she dipped her head - it would only happen to her that she would get pulled up for being on time. 

“I wasn’t even late!” She protested, hoping for some mercy since not only fifteen minutes ago she was actually proud of her ability to be here on time. 

“Well, not according to this.” As he pulled out his phone she assumed he had some sort of employee record and her eyes had deceived her when she swiped in at nine exactly, but as he swiped to a messaging app and handed his phone over, she could feel the heat rush to her face.

Mark Watney: hey Kapoor! hope you had fun last night, you know i always appreciate your beautiful singing. anyway, this is just a white flag message to say that if mindy is late it’s my fault, okay? i kept her back. my fault 100%. see you in a few weeks! scaramouche, scaramouche!

“So, he remembers your rendition of Bohemian Rhapsody… that’s nice.” Mindy’s attempt to dodge the point was unsuccessful as Venkat’s brow rose. “We went for coffee this morning ‘cause we both woke on Mars Time! That’s it!” Raising pleading eyes to Venkat whose brow only rose a little higher. “Oh, come _on_ , what do you think that text meant? And why are you so interested?” And it was for this reason that Mindy wasn’t going to mention being out with Mark at all, but he had gone ahead and made himself the excuse without realising what he was going to put her in with Venkat: a heap of shit she didn’t need.

“Because it’s a goddamn cinderella story if it turns out, plus, it makes me laugh to see you squirm after you’re smart with me, _plus_ I still think you’d be good together.” He shrugged as Mindy sighed, more than a tinge of frustration in her short huff. Maybe she thought Mark and her were growing to be friends but Venkat was really starting to get on her nerves about it being more than it was. 

“Well, I’m glad you’re entertained.” Flapping some papers about in a polite attempt to get rid of him, she still couldn’t stop herself from speaking her mind. “Then maybe you’ll be sad to know he’s leaving Houston-”

“I know, to go home, but I’ve still got hope when he comes back.” Venkat grinned but her brow sunk deeper, she wasn’t hiding her annoyance now. “It’s only a few weeks.” 

“I managed to live before Mark Watney and I live just fine after Mark Watney, so can you just leave it?”

“Well, why don’t you save us all a few months of messin’ around and just live _with_ him instead?” His comment was almost whispered behind a hand that adjusted his glasses, but Mindy had had enough. 

“Will you stop!” Her sudden volume shocked them both as well as a few people around them who were no longer oblivious to the tension in the conversation. “Fine, I haven’t known him long but we are _friends_ and that’s it.” Her pleading eyes had turned hard for as much as she liked Venkat, she really couldn't take much more of this suggestion. “And I resent being called a ‘goddamn cinderella story’, but thanks for letting me know how you think of me.”

“Mindy, I was just teasing, you know I didn't mean anything by it.” His tone was quiet and steady, trying to get a handle on her loose temper. 

“Maybe not, but you still said it.” Her volume had dropped but her tone was still harsh with the beginnings of a venom neither of them thought she had. “And you were right, I don’t need you looking out for me, this isn’t high school so please keep your opinions and your ‘goddamn’ eyebrow to yourself.” Standing abruptly from her desk pushed Venkat a step back. “Y’know, every nice thing he’s done for me has been almost ruined by you and your opinion, so can I just have one time without it?” 

“Mindy-” 

“We have a meeting on Thursday at eleven over the Mons project and I will see you there.” She clenched her jaw and turned on her heels to the break room with no real aim in mind except to get out of his space. She was overwhelmed and upset. She just wanted to go home and hug Avocado until he struggled free and not think about Venkat or her mom getting on at her for the same stuff or even think about Mark for just enough time to recover.

Finding herself in a chair near the back of the break room with a mug of coffee she didn’t even remember pouring, she could barely believe she had just said what she did. Venkat was a nice person and had been good to her for a few years now and ultimately, he didn’t deserve her lashing out at him - but she didn’t deserve to be a target either. She doubted Venkat had ever brought this up to Mark since Mark used himself as an excuse in a text even after Mindy said she wouldn’t - Mark’s naivety told her all she needed about that.

Her fingers circled her mug, trying to soak up the warmth from the ceramic to stop her from falling too deeply into her thoughts. But the one thought that couldn’t be brushed away for now with the warmth in her fingers was that it was all so stupid. So stupid that when she meets someone and enjoys their company and makes a friend, others were trying to butt their way in. She didn’t blame her mom so much since she was so far away and sometimes phone conversations didn’t just cut it the way real life ones did, but Venkat should know better. Mindy was meek and shy at the best of times and only opened up around people she was comfortable with. Venkat had been between her and Mark last night so couldn’t he make the jump that the reason Mindy had been looking at Mark was just because she was comfortable with him? Surely he wouldn’t think that Mindy, who was scared of strangers, would be comfortable at _flirting_ at a table full of people she didn’t even know?

She let out a long sigh into her cooling coffee and decided, with a sniff and a rub at her eyes, that she better return to her desk at some point. Pouring the coffee down the communal sink and giving the mug a rub dry, she adjusted her glasses and tried to sneak back to her desk, but she couldn’t ignore the few interested glances she got as she sat down. She could only hope that the subject matter of the small blow-out wasn’t now common knowledge and it was just the fact that she might have shouted a little bit at Venkat that had them interested. Either way, she was now more than a little embarrassed and guilty, but her shut down of Venkat meant the chances of seeing him before Thursday were slim to none. 

#

She took her time in leaving that night. She had meandered through the hallways and corridors, wandered out through security and chatted to the guards she knew while keeping her eyes peeled on the few stragglers leaving around her. She even waited outside the main doors, her phone in her hand as if she was texting or e-mailing as she watched everyone except Venkat exit the building. Part of her didn’t want to be the first to apologise, but the rest of her said it shouldn’t matter who was first when they were both in the wrong. Venkat had only been teasing, even if it had been getting to her, and he might not have deserved to be shouted at in the middle of Mission Control at half nine in the morning. Mindy's skin just wasn't as thick as other peoples' and things like this would never just roll off her back.

With no sign of Venkat, or his car in the lot, she headed home for the weekend with a new coating of unease over her shoulders. She really didn’t want to let this argument or bad energy fester between them, but like Mark had done for her that morning, she didn’t want to apologise in a text. When she got home, she picked Avocado up and carried him around in her arms as she watered her seeds, made herself some chamomile tea and curled up on her sofa. She was grateful that he was enjoying the warmth and pats from her enough not to escape like she thought he would since being alone in a one-bed apartment meant there was no one else available for the hug she needed. 

“Just one more week, Avie.” She muttered against his coat, flicking channels to something monotonous. “One week and we’ll be home.” And maybe she can get her mom to stop flapping over her Houston life long enough to get a hug from her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> okay so its short but i battled this chapter in a duel and it almost won. + thanks for nice asks on my tumblr, you guys are too kind i swear!!


	13. Chapter 13

Mindy’s weekend was long, lonely and full of work. Even though she didn’t go to her desk and sit at her computer, she had found a spot on her couch, her laptop on her knee and worked on piecing her project together for Thursday. It wasn’t due for Thursday like her presentation was, but she wasn’t leaving any pixel unturned for her meeting, even if it was just Venkat and a few other line managers she wasn’t all that scared of. Still, she had her presentation ready with its slides, her notes and handouts, as well as conversation pieces just in case it gets awkward. By Saturday night she couldn’t find a thing left that she hadn’t covered, hadn’t got a note on or just didn’t know something about. If there was such a thing as over-prepared, she was it - but only for this meeting since the rest of her life, particularly her social relationships, were in tatters. Or so it seemed. 

She hadn’t had so much as an e-mail from Venkat. Not even the general work ones with ten or thirty people CC’d. She didn’t think he would purposefully remove her name from it, but she did feel it oddly quiet. And of course, her phone had gone completely silent, nothing from anyone and she didn’t feel in the mood to start her own conversations. As for people physically close by, her neighbour Claire had gone away for the weekend with the boyfriend that was always banging doors after ten at night. But even with that disturbance gone, she couldn’t sleep. Too many things buzzing around her head; why did she get so angry with Venkat? Why did she think it was okay to shout at him - in front of everyone? Why did she feel so caught when Mark had text Venkat? Why was she so distinctly unhappy at the thought of Mark disappearing for four weeks? And why, _why_ , was she still not packed for going to her mom’s? Mostly her issue lay with her guilt in snapping at Venkat and even though she told herself nothing could be done until Monday at the soonest, she was still restless with apology. 

To get her mind off it, she had eventually phoned her mom when she got up on Sunday - after wasting five hours of Mars Time. They talked about their loose plans again, setting them more into action before her mom told her off for not being packed yet. They were on call for three hours before her mom switched the conversation to Mindy’s work, and being the polite and mindful woman she always was, asked how her colleagues were - starting with Venkat. Mindy didn't have to say what she had done, her stiffness in her answers told her mom enough. 

“Mindy, what happened?” Her mom’s tone had her worrying her lip before she answered, trying to bite back the threatening emotion. 

“Nothing, he ju-”

“Don't say nothing, something happened, tell me.” Her mom had never liked it when Mindy wasn't forthcoming with details but due to their distance, it had grown into a firm peeve. 

“He’d been getting on at me for stuff for a while and I snapped.” She shrugged before she realised no one but Avocado saw her trying to play her words off like they were nothing. 

“What stuff? Your projects?” 

“No…” 

“Mindy, I’m not a mind reader.” 

Part of her didn't want to go through it all again since she'd been torturing herself with it since it happened, and bringing Mark up to her mom in this light felt like waving a rag at a bull. But her mom was stubborn and Mindy knew this wouldn't be dropped just because she asked. The only way this was going to happen would be to rip it like a band aid. She was understandably hesistent.

“I shouted at him in SatCon for teasing me.” 

“About?” 

“Mark.” Mindy rolled her eyes at herself as she said his name. Talking it out like this really did make it sound stupid, like she had been overreacting but she hadn’t felt like that at the time. 

“What about him?” 

“That we’re friends but he - Venkat - kept making it sound like more and it’s not and it got to me.” Now she definitely felt like she was in high school, curled on the couch and picking at the fabric as she complained to her mom about being picked on and losing her usually cool temper. 

“Maybe he just saw something? You do talk about him sometimes” 

“Because people ask!” She groaned, feeling a flicker of the same frustration she had had with Venkat but she didn’t want to feel that with her mom. “Venkat asks, you ask, and I’m sure if I told anyone else I knew him, they’d ask too! Mom, we spent three hours talking about plans and who brought Mark up? Wasn’t me.” 

Her hand stretched out to an inquisitive Avocado who was obviously unsettled from his nap by the rise in volume. 

“Okay, you don’t have to go pointing fingers, Mindy.” 

“I’m sorry, it’s been a long day - week, really.” 

It wasn’t long after this the conversation went strained, her mom dancing around a question she obviously wanted to ask, which, when it finally came out was ‘how _is_ Mark?’. Mindy complained before details were dragged from her and while she didn’t want to admit she woke on Mars Time again, she told her mom about their most recent coffee meetup. Once her mom was satisfied with the level of information, she let Mindy change the subject back to Venkat as she looked for any advice on the situation. But, with her mom’s suggestion of an apology e-mail declined, Mindy had decided she’d either catch him on monday morning on the way into work or she’d suck it up and go visit him in his office. But that was tomorrow, she still had another night sodden with guilt to endure first. 

To distract herself she finally got round to packing, sorting out outfits for a Seattle summer - some shorts, mostly jeans, definitely rain-jackets. While Avocado climbed around her piles of outfits and maneuvered around her shoes, she started to pull together some things for him - the small toys he had that were scattered around her flat and his collar he rarely had on for being a housecat. She felt a little jealous at how easy a cat was to pack up as opposed to herself. His cat box remained tucked away at the back of her cupboard since she found no reason to stress him out early - herself, on the other hand, was feeling an imbalance of stress and relax at the sight of her zipped up bag. To ignore the flighty reaction seeing the bag, she kicked it back into her closet and resigned herself to the couch with toast, chamomile and the nightly news. 

The headlines were nothing out of the ordinary - death, destruction, deprivation - while experts came to talk about issues that governments are doing nothing about. She had the remote in her hand, ready to flick off to something less depressing when the AresIII logo appeared behind the newscaster as they switched to the last story of the night. It was a story that had her cursing under her breath in sympathy for Chris and Beth who had finally been ‘caught’ holding hands in public. Accompanying the story were pictures very obviously taken with a very long lense. Their features were so hard to make out that even Mindy, who had been so familiar with their line-up poster (it hung, framed, in the breakroom), struggled to be sure it was them. But, she supposed, who ever had taken the three pictures of them had obviously been after them for a while and that sort of singular determination wouldn’t leave room for ‘lookalikes’ when being reported on national, and soon to be international, news. It made Mindy think that, at least now, Chris and Beth might have some respite from constant cameras sneaking around them but it hit her then, too, that Mark would probably have to endure it twice as much. Her thought had just been targeted by the newscaster in the most mindlessly invading threat ever said with a smile,

_“So, that’s everyone paired off - except for the Martian Hero himself - but we’ll keep an eye on you, Mr Watney, don’t you worry.”_

Harrowing stories on the news were commonplace enough not to bring her to tears any more, but a threat like that ran a chill down her spine and filled her with nausea. Mark didn’t deserve to have cameras tailing his every move and for them to brag about it to anyone who was listening. She supposed she would know all about that but she was glad that she had enough humility not to tell anyone what she was doing and certainly not to tell Mark to his face about it (until he had found out from Venkat). Beyond that, she often felt tinges of confused regret whenever she saw paparazzi photographs of the crew, as if satellites had just been her way of catching the latest update. Obviously, part of her told her not to be so daft, her satellites had been important and if Mark knew she felt or thought like that, he’d tell her off and try and be grateful for something she didn’t feel he was indebted for. 

With the news finishing after the last segment, she pulled her phone from her pocket and typed out a message to Mark now that she was thinking about him.

[20:30:03]: I hope you didn’t see the news, they don’t deserve to be on air.

[20:31:12]: oh i saw it. annie already text me to say that maybe a public event would get everyone to chill out for a bit

[20:31:31] She could be right, I’d trust her.

[20:31:58]: i wouldn’t mind a public event like the last ones and i don’t mind when regular people come up to me - that’s kinda cool - it’s the press, they’re just outta their minds.

[20:32:18]: They must be after saying that at the end. And Chris + Beth, they didn’t deserve that either.

[20:32:30] actually they did that on purpose.

[20:32:55] they were sick of hiding it and driving in different cars, so they just thought ‘fuck it’ and gave up.

[20:33:20]: Still, I hate that they were pressured like that.

[20:33:50] yeah but they got it on their own terms as much as they could, so they were okay with it.

Own terms or not, they were forced to making that choice - keep private and be chased or come public and possibly left alone a bit more. It wasn’t much of a choice at all, and if it had been up to Mindy she wasn’t sure which option would be better, especially since there was no guarantee that they really would be left alone. Then, like the newscaster threatened, they’ll be after Mark next, more so than they already are.  
[20:35:22] At least you’re going home tomorrow, you might get some alone time.

[20:35:50] more like tonight since we’re leaving in… seven hours. 

[20:36:20] Technically tomorrow, but why so late/early?

[20:36:45] jeez, what are you? time police? dark = night. + just so we get home at a semi-normal time. if you can call 10pm tomorrow night semi-normal.

[20:36:55] that can’t be right. 

[20:37:20] you conferring with Rich now? What dyou mean?

[20:37:45] well.. Surely you can’t just drive for 20 hours straight, you’re gonna have to stop some times.

[20:39:11] ...i guess that’s why you’re the first mate then, to keep the captain from saying stupid things like that. so when does the first mate think we’ll get home?

[20:41:32] Dunno. Tuesday morning?

[20:43:12] that’s not very exact

[20:43:34] I’m not a rocket scientist.

[20:44:14] you work with them. okay, bet time. i bet i get home for 02:32 Tuesday morning.

[20:45:03] I say 06:28. what happens when i win this time?

[20:46:11] well when i win you have to come with me to the next press conference to make sure i don’t say anything stupid. if you win, you get to make me say something stupid, on air, to the world.

[20:46:28] What are you willing to say, on air, to the world?

[20:47:01] well they already know i’m not scared of swearing from my video logs, so, do your worst.

[20:47:33] “Avocado is a great name for a cat” - Mark Watney, NASA press conference.

[20:48:38] i’d say that anyway, avocado IS a great name for a cat. think of something better - or i will since i’ve got a day in the back of a car with nothin to do.

[20:49:13] Technically 28 and a half hours, so good luck with that.

[20:49:41] i think you mean twenty four and a half.

Mindy rolled her eyes with a laugh to herself and put her phone down. The prospect of going to a press conference for Mark had gone over easier than she thought, in fact, she was quite interested in the idea. She had only ever seen them on television and while she had absolutely no plans or wants to be a part of one, she wouldn’t mind giving one a watch from the room it was being filmed in. Still, she didn’t suppose she’d be anywhere except up the back beside some of the usual suspects; a few line managers, Mitch and maybe Venkat. That would be if Venkat was talking to her by then. 

#

Come Monday morning, she left early, early enough to be driving into the carpark as the night guards were leaving. She had decided that she wouldn’t sit in the carpark, but sit at her desk until half eight when she would make her way up through the elevators and lengthy corridors to Venkat’s beige office. It was a foolproof plan until she got to his office before him. She had knocked on the door twice and after no call to come in, she took a peek to find it empty. No jacket, no briefcase, no lukewarm cup of coffee abandoned on his desk. She fought with herself whether or not to sit in on the other side of his desk and wait for him like an appointment, or stand out like a student in trouble with a teacher. It wasn’t long after she decided that perhaps waiting in his office like a bad surprise could scare the shit out him which didn’t exactly say ‘I’m sorry’, that he came, shoulder first, through the double doors at the other side of the corridor. She stood from her cross legged position on the floor as his expression fell - something that only made her feel worse for leaving their friendship in such a mess for the whole weekend. 

“Miss Park.” 

Being called by her surname didn’t have her hopeful for the rest of the conversation, especially in such a short tone. 

“Look, I-” 

“Get inside, I’ve got ten minutes.” He cut her apology short as he marched into his office, hanging up the jacket and setting down the briefcase she had been looking for earlier. Even though she had made her way up to see him, she still quietly stepped into the room with her head down, as if she was just waiting to be told off. 

“Venkat, I’m s-” Cut off again, but this time with a flat palm in the usual ‘shut up’ gesture as he dropped into his chair. 

“Mindy, you were partially right.” 

“...No, I don’t think I was.” That had come as a surprise, she didn’t expect him to start with that, especially not after she had replayed what had happened between them over and over throughout the weekend. More than that, his expression and general output suggested that this was a disturbance, but minor, and didn’t need the energy put into it that Mindy obviously had been. 

“No, you were. Maybe the temper didn’t have to come into it, but maybe I was pushing the wrong thing.” 

“I’m sorry I yelled, I never yell, but you - and my mom - it was just-” 

“I know, and I only did it because it seems - seemed - logical, if I could say that.” Again, logical hadn’t been a word she had even considered, nevermind expected to hear and it had stunned her into silence as she filed it away to go over later. Venkat, however, found her silence as an urge to continue explaining. “He’s alone, you’re alone, you already gave him three years of your, albeit _working_ , life, and he feels like he owes you his back-from-the-dead - and mars - life.” The explanation of why Venkat had been pushing sort of made sense on paper, but in real life, it just hadn’t played out so fluently. Mindy could also see this ‘logic’ applying to what her mom had been piecing together too. “Then you got on so well, he wouldn’t shut up about you - but I guess that’s just ‘cause you did see him first and maybe that means more to him that we can really imagine.”

She didn’t know what else to say so she nodded along. That last sentence hit her hard enough to starting biting on her lip. Every time he had tried to thank her for seeing him or ‘saving him’, she had tried to brush it off. Yet, she watched him struggle and be alone for two years, neither of them knowing if he was really going to make it out alive and as one good thing came to him, two bad came chasing after it. She might have been there seeing him lift solar panels across the Martian sand, lifting rocks as thick as rover wheels into messages for her but maybe sometimes it escaped her just how singular he had been. He was absolutely literally the only person on that entire planet and he had eventually found out that on his loneliest days and nights, someone had been watching him. If it had been her up there instead, she’d want to be their friend too, she’d want to thank them every day and she’d tell them as often as she could how much she had appreciated what they had done for her. But she had brushed it off from him. 

“And, do you know how many people are aware he’s driving home today?” Venkat asked, his brow raised like it had been on Friday, but his expression was far from meddling and interested. 

“Well, you, I guess Annie, probably Mitch and the crew.” She started to ring suggestions off on her fingers but stopped when Venkat started to shake his head. 

“Annie knows he’s going home, but she doesn’t know when, Mitch wanted plausible deniability so he doesn’t have a clue, the crew might know but Mark said he wouldn’t tell anyone unless they asked, and I doubt the question of ‘Are you going home to Chicago this week, Mark?’ would’ve come up after last night's news bulletin.” Venkat’s brow dipped, as Mindy’s gaze did the same, obviously there were some bruises after that segment, but apart from that, she was slowly realising just how involved in this she had become when she was privy to information over Annie and Mitch. “But I don’t think you asked, yet I know you know.” 

It wasn’t a question but she shook her head anyway. He had just come out with it after she had mentioned going back to Seattle for a while. He didn’t have to tell her, she didn’t ask for it, she didn’t even ask if he was going anywhere - it hadn’t even crossed her mind and admittedly she had even forgot that Houston wasn’t his home.

“So that’s two people that know where he’s going and when he’s going.” Venkat shrugged, as if all these facts in front of him only lead to the singular conclusion that Mark and Mindy were all too fitting for each other. It was a shrug that Mindy missed as her gaze was still on the floor, going over how few people knew something that was so vital to Mark’s safety and privacy. 

“But Annie’ll know when he’s coming back if she’s scheduling a conference for him, right?” 

“Well, no - what conference?” 

“Oh, well, because of all the press trying to catch him Annie said that it might be better to schedule another conference.” 

“Annie told you this?” 

“No, I don’t even have her number - Mark told me. He said that it would either be on the couple of days he’s coming back to look at apartments or when he’s actually back in a month. I thought you would’ve known.” 

“Mindy I didn’t even know any of that.” Venkat’s expression was exasperated, as if she had just spoke in tongues. “He just told you this?” 

“Well, yeah, I’d show you but my phone’s on my desk.” Her hands still frisked at her pockets in case she had brought it when she knew she didn’t.

“Mindy you have all that info on your phone and it’s sitting on your desk.” 

“Well… are we expecting a robbery?” 

“No, but, c’mon, if someone finds it, they’re gonna know a hell of a lot more than even Teddy could’ve told them - well, maybe not Teddy ‘cause he really doesn’t have a clue, but I couldn’t have told them anything like that…” He came to a slow end, shifting his gaze before himself and patted down his tie, as if his next question was going to be something difficult. “What else do you know?” 

“Not much,” Raising her gaze as she tried to recall what else Mark had told her, she really wished she had brought her phone along. “Chris and Beth got caught on purpose, Mark and his parents were leaving at three this morning, he wants me to g-” Mindy caught herself just before she mentioned the press conference again with something telling her not to give that away just yet. “Guess what time he would be home for and I said Tuesday morning at like six… oh, that you didn’t want him to fly home in case it caused a fuss at the airport-”

“That was mostly Annie and she was right, really.” 

“They’re gonna sell the Houston house and Mark’s gonna get an apartment here, but he hasn’t found one yet and… he thinks the Cubs will win the series and I’m getting ten dollars off him when they don’t.” Finishing with that had Venkat laughing which, in return, put a small smile at her lips, glad to find themselves back to where they should be. Before when she and Venkat spoke about Mark she felt closed and private about it, but with the pressure off from Venkat’s insinuations, she was much happier to disclose the smaller details she had been harboring recently. 

“And what are you gonna spend your ten dollars on?” Venkat asked, playing along that Mark had no chance in their bet. 

“I hadn’t thought of anything yet.” She admitted. “Maybe some Mariner merchandise since I only get that cash if they get further than the Cubs.” 

“Damn, Mindy, I was rootin’ for you but now I’m not so sure, but, listen, I’ve got a meeting in three minutes so...” 

“Oh, sure - and I am really sorry for shouting at you.” Her bright eyes caught his, trying to pass along just how much she regretted losing her temper. It really wasn’t something she did often, but when it happened it usually happened in the worst of places. “I promise I won’t do it again.”

“Unless I deserve it, but next time try maybe somewhere not as busy.” 

“ _Sorry_ ” Almost pleading with him to forgive her again, he gave her a small nod and a smile before they both stood. 

“Y’know I didn’t even know you could be that loud, you scared me.” He nudged her playfully as they walked to his door and she rolled her eyes. 

“I don’t think I scared you, Venkat, I think you just weren’t expecting it.” 

“I think that’s was scaring someone means, Mindy, showing them something when they’re not expecting it.”

#

[04:22:12] i’m sharing my location with you because i’m about 6 minutes out from my house and if i make it before 4:30, i win, if we get there on 4:30, it’s a draw, and if it’s after 4:30, you win. [Click Map For Location]

[04:24:10] i’m like 2 streets away. [Click Map For Location]

[04:27:33] the last set of lights before my street and we got caught at them fuck fuck! [Click Map For Location]

[04:29:22] holy shit holy shit i can see it. [Click Map For Location]

[04:29:34] it won’t count unless i’m standing on my drive way, i know, but shit we’re pulling up [Click Map For Location]

[04:29:51] i’m fucking here!!!! woo!!! haha!! [Click Map For Location]

[04:30:03] one press conference ticket for mindy!!

It was nice to wake up laughing as she scrolled through all the maps, each time the little blue dot getting closer and closer to a large lot on a wide tree-lined street according to Streetview. It crossed her mind how much of a secret it should be to know where he is right now, but she didn’t want to think about it as she scrolled through the messages to read them again before replying.

[07:11:12]I bet your parents were happy with you telling them to drive faster. Congrats, though, I’m actually looking forward to it. 

She left to start her day, getting showered, fixing her bag and watering seeds. She was in work before she thought to check her phone again.

[08:13:11] yeah they weren’t too happy when i suggested drive-thru for dinner but agreed when i said it would be ‘safer’. don’t tell them i was lying or they’ll ground me.

#

The rest of her week was singularly concerned with Olympus Mons. Getting ready for her meeting was mostly done with the work she put in over the weekend, but now it was back to monitoring and being the long-distance nature photographer she felt was a more apt job description. It one way it was similar to watching Mark trudge around Mars, but just without the stress, the hope and the uncertainty of it all. It was much more calm, much less pressured and maybe even a little bit boring. Waiting for something to happen with a due date long into the future was never exactly exciting, like watching a pregnant woman every hour of the day just in case she pops early when everyone knows she most likely won’t. 

#  
Come Thursday morning, she dumped her jacket and unnecessaries by her desk and made her way along to her designated conference room with her USB stick and her hand outs, feeling awfully like she had reverted back four years to university. Still, she was happily surprised to wake with very few nerves. She thought that it must be down to sorting her problem with Venkat and knowing the rest of the people who were coming. Overall, she might even have been looking forward to it a little. 

With her papers out and her slideshow starting, she waited as people came to join her in the room, sitting down tablets and phones and various gadgets to keep in constant contact with all their people. Mindy hardly thought it was necessary for someone to have four phones as a Martian Environmental Specialist emptied his pockets across the desk, but then again, she wasn’t quite at their level yet - what did she know? 

As Venkat wandered in with a smile and slipped his phone back into his pocket, Mindy got started, flicking to the first slide of her presentation. Her presentation was only a more detailed, in depth version of the article NASA had already churned out on her findings of Olympus Mons and didn’t take more than forty minutes to get through before she was coming to a close with her ‘In Summary’ slide. At the end, the questions were brief and thankfully nothing had her dying on her feet. She managed to answer the questions fully and without hesitation, something Venkat gave a smile for at the end of each answer. 

When the line managers, specialists and guests had filtered out, Venkat helped her gather her leftover handouts and tuck in chairs left askew. 

“When’s your flight?” Venkat asked, remembering she was leaving tomorrow for a week. 

“Tomorrow at six, but I have to be there at four for check-in.” She said with a pout, thinking of the early morning ahead of her. 

“Damn, that’s early.” He sympathised, shuffling her papers in order before handing them over. “I’d be okay with it if you wanted to knock off at twelve, it’s not like you’re slacking or in ‘holiday-mode’ and winding down.” Venkat nodded towards the hand-outs, obviously impressed with her presentation with her holiday the next day. 

“Oh, it’s okay, I don’t think I’d go that early, but maybe five or something - if that’s alright?” She liked the idea of having a couple of extra hours to go through her things again and make sure she had enough or even just the right stuff with her - especially for Avocado. 

Venkat shrugged in reply. “Fine by me, just make sure you clear it with whoever’s on supervising Control today.”

Mindy nodded, grabbing her USB from the computer before heading to the door with Venkat. 

“So it was alright then? My presentation?” 

“Definitely, very good for something that hasn’t actually happened yet, plus the guy up the back with the floppy hair? He has a hand in with funding, so if you see him walking about, be sure to say hello.” 

“That’s manipulation, Venkat.” 

“That’s the game, Mindy.” 

# 

That night she brought her neighbour, Claire, in for some friendly-instructions primarily aimed around her seeds. Three of the five of them had actually breached the topsoil and small stems with a curled top could be seen breaking through. Seeing this had put Mindy on edge - she was leaving for a whole week and her seeds were already out the soil. It wasn’t that she didn’t trust Claire, but these seeds were highly important to Mindy and for the first time in her life she had managed to keep them alive until she could see _stems_. Obviously it was Mark’s interest and trust in her to grow them, but she was still very proud of herself. 

With Claire politely warned not to forget about them, the last thing she had to do was lay everything out by her door for an easy grab in the morning - Avocado’s box included. The box upset him as Mindy knew it would. He didn’t want to go near it and the minute she brought it out he had scooted off to her room and out of it’s sight. Still, she couldn’t do anything about it and he wouldn’t be in it for longer than he absolutely had to which meant he would be the very last thing to pack. She felt guilty nonetheless. 

By eight she was lying in bed, eyes shut but mind whirring. Nothing in particular was in focus, but hopes for Olympus Mons, seeing her mom, Avocado behaving on the flight, Venkat forgiving her and the surprise he had at how much she knew about Mark. Maybe they had been getting on well but what she had learned was through conversation, nothing else. Although, she briefly wondered how many times in her life had she been told that she struggled to see advances and signs of interest aimed towards her, and especially when the one showing interest and advances was as brightly famous and widely treasured as Mark Watney. In her head it was so obscure and unrealistic she had tried to convince everyone around her to come down to her level where they were just good friends, except she hadn’t given that memo to Mark. Her easiness might have been mistaken for flirtatiousness but, that wasn’t _her_ fault. She was sure they were friends and she was sure Mark would agree - he texted her a lot, always replied to her, gave her seeds, took her out and bought her dinner and drinks, thought Avocado was a good name, invited her to a conference without the option of saying no, trusted her enough to share his home location _and_ tell her more than Annie, Venkat, Mitch and Teddy knew combined. 

She felt Avocado bounce up on the end of her bed and sit by her feet. She tried to rub at his side with the sole of her foot in an attempt to push him further up towards her hand, but being stubborn, he stayed put.

“We’re just good friends, right Avie? Nothin’ wrong with that.” The silence in return was what she was expecting as she rolled onto her back, yawning in the dark of her room. “You’re gonna hate me after tomorrow… and we have to get up in seven hours.” 

Her phone was poised on her bedside cabinet, an alarm ready to berate her awake at three in the morning to be on time for security checks at the airport. She looked at it with tired disdain before settling her head back to look at her ceiling. A week in Washington would be more than nice and she could do with the break, but the one thing that was just niggling at her was the question of whether or not she’d have any signal for her phone - what if Mark thought she was ignoring him? Shifting round in her bed again, she got a meow of complaint when her knee pushed Avocado out his spot and onto the floor. 

“Sorry, but this is _my_ bed, y’know.” With a roll of her eyes, she listened to him pad off to find a better spot without any ejections as she tried to settle her mind and sleep for a few hours.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this took a while since i ended up getting a bit lost in amongst all the things i had/have planned for this. and then, being a stupidly massive star trek fan and hearing about Anton Yelchin, i was pretty destroyed for the last couple of days.  
> anyways, this is kinda a double bc this chapter bc its like 6k and i was gonna separate it but it was gonna work out as 4.5k and then like 1.5 which is just daft. good luck reading 6k!


	14. Chapter 14

Things had been slow since they arrived home on Tuesday morning. Firstly, his parents left him to unpack and apartment-hunt back in Houston while they, not used to long journeys and moveable sleeping patterns, went to sleep for a few hours. Mark didn’t mind being on his own like this while he had things to do and knowing that there were still people within his vicinity, but he still plugged in some earphones to minimise the quiet.

It felt counterproductive to be sitting in Chicago and researching Houston, but there was no other way around it as he flicked from property site to property site in hope of something reasonable. The less flash the better and while fame was fun now and then, he wasn’t going out for something incredible in _Houston_ of all places. Plus, it was just somewhere to base himself when he got back to work, so a simple one-bed wouldn’t be pushing it, it’d be perfect. Except, it was exceedingly difficult to find something he liked. Every one he looked at had something not right with it - none of them were wrong, just not right. He tried to widen his search, being honest that maybe an hours drive to work every day wasn’t all that terrible and maybe living not so close to the heart of Houston was a better idea anyway. By doing this he soon had a few places on a list to either check out when he got back or phone up about. Still, it had taken him just about five full hours to find three possibilities 

When his parents surfaced again, talks of things to do soon occurred making Mark feel guilty. Unless they wanted ambushed, his and their privacy blown, as well as a not-so-subtle posse of press at their backs, Mark was practically prisoner. His mom left him on the couch with a kiss pressed to the crown of his head like he was thirteen, not thirty, before leaving with his dad for groceries. Mark had heeded Annie’s (aggressive) warnings about staying inside as much as he could unless he wanted his private time at home ruined, but it was starting to look like a cage and he had only been here half a day. 

He was still in two minds about the press, which wasn’t helping his willpower against the small voice that said ‘fuck it, go outside, who cares?’. On one hand, they were sneaky, manipulative and wouldn't really care about Mark’s wellbeing if they caught a scoop. On the other hand he wanted to interact with them, crack his jokes and get interviewed like movie stars do with crazy questions. He wanted to get pictures taken with kids and inspire them to be something great and do what he did (minus the stuck on Mars bit). But he just couldn't convince himself it would be all so smooth if he did reach out to the press. 

For today, at least, he had himself planted on this sofa to enjoy the front room he grew up running in and out of. 

#

The next few days played out the exact same. He sat about for a few hours in the morning until he got too annoyed at apartment hunting and went to try and be a handyman around the house. He beat back spiders in the attic, washed cars, emptied out old cupboards, chased a persistent stray and washed dishes that hadn’t even been used, all before his parents came home from work to tell him all the people who were asking after him, again. After that it was dinner, something homemade since none of them could decide on a delivery option and none of them wanted to risk going out. Come late Wednesday night when the television was awful, he decided to break up his night and send out a few texts to hear that everyone else's night was better than his. Chris was at Beth’s parent’s house, fighting her sister for dominance in scrabble and failing (pictures accompanied his stressful all-caps texts). Rick was putting the kids to bed and sent Mark a video of three kids with damp hair in pyjamas saying ‘night night Uncle Mark’ at Rick’s request. It was unrealistically cute and made him laugh as he watched it on a loop for a few moments. Commander Lewis didn’t respond, but she didn’t usually have her phone with her ‘after hours’ as she called it (which was a lie, she just only responded to emergency things and Mark’s boredom didn’t make the cut for an ‘emergency’). The last person to text him back was Mindy who was finishing up her slides for her presentation the next day. 

What Mindy didn’t know was that he had planned to go back to Houston and sit in to listen to her presentation, but the timeframe didn’t play out the way he wanted it to and heading back to Houston only a day after he got to Chicago wasn’t realistic. Instead, he chatted with her as she walked him through it.

Mindy: And then just talk about igneous rocks, the temperature readings and the expansion.

Me: perfect. i bet venkat cries at the end.

Mindy: Because he’s glad it’s over and he can leave.

Me: no, cause it’s gonna be awesome.

Mindy: We’ll see. If he does applaud I hope it cuts out question time, that’s always the worst.

Me: bullshit, you know exactly what you’re talking about, you’ll be fine.  
Me: and if anyone asks something awkward, they’re a dick.

Mindy: Yeah, but I can’t tell them that, can I?

Me: hell yeah! why wouldn’t you?

Mindy: I’d like to keep my job, Mark.

Me: alright, well just think of the worst question and cover it.

Mindy: I can’t think of the worst question, though. 

Me: then I’d say there’s no chance you could be caught out.

Mindy: They’re gonna ask something wild, I know it.

Me: do you want me to quiz you on mars stuff?

Mindy: No! It’s fine, I’ll get over it, you don’t need to waste time doing that.

While Mark didn’t want to admit he still had some mental issues with the Mars journey, he found it simple enough to distance himself, to think of Mars objectively and think of things to ask her about that others might not have. Specifically, he asked her about the dust the planet is covered in, what it’s made of, how that changes going onto Mons, about the geographical layout of Mons, all about those igneous rocks that he couldn’t spell and started calling ‘iggy rocks’ for shortness, and finally about how she had been measuring her data. Ultimately, he covered everything he could think of before he started branching off into the stupid things. 

Me: if you were trying to account for all the oxygen in a room so as to burn off excess hydrogen, could you manage it?

Mindy: I’m not a chemist?

Me: yeah but could you?

Mindy: It’d take me ages to try and remember chemistry from school but I’d maybe manage it badly.

Me: talk me through your methods

Mindy: ...well, I’d need to know areas and windows and things like that.

Me: anything else?

Mindy: Is my breathing normal or laboured?

Me: fuck. did you watch my video logs from mars?

Mindy: No?

Me: well i didn’t remember to count my own oxygen and blew myself up in the hab

Mindy: Mark!!! You could’ve died!!

Me: i know, i know, but i thought i had my numbers right the first time. i just forgot myself

Mindy continued to chastise him, telling him that if he had blown himself up she would’ve been out of a job. While her words were eventually passive and ironic, her initial shock and consequential anger accounted for a care he hadn’t been expecting. When his mom found out he had almost accidentally killed himself in the hab, she had struck him with her bag and refused to give him a slice of pie after his dinner for ‘blowing himself up’. Still, he had at least expected the shock and horror from his mom, but maybe it was naive for him to think that Mindy wouldn’t have reacted similarly. He knew all too well how long being trapped on Mars felt and even though he didn’t learn about her until he was back on Earth, it was a great comfort to know that he really hadn’t been alone all that time. She had, after all, spent two years watching him to predict his next move - watching him closely to prepare any help he was getting - and all that meant that she had spent two years really working to plan for his _future_ , working to keep him _alive_. She had a right to be angry he almost ruined her work, and while it tinged him with humility that she reacted as she did, he wondered if there had been a flash of something more than colleague-to-colleague or budding-friend concern in her gentle reprimands.

Me: alright, fine, i’ll remember to count myself next time.

Mindy: “Next time”.

Me: well you never know when the situation might arise.

Mindy: Please avoid it at all costs if you see it.

 

By the time they had reached their goodnights it was almost two in the morning and while Mindy tried to convince him that she would never be able to sleep with her presentation on her mind, but he still didn’t want her yawning through it on his behalf. 

#

At ten on Thursday, just before he broke from scouring sites for apartments, he received a small text. It was short, quick, but there was something distinctly cute about it.

Mindy: Presentation was fine, Venkat didn’t cry but neither did I. Success.

He might’ve just been having a really boring day, but by the time he had given up on his laptop, finished laundry, dusting, washing cars and tending to the accumulating cat shit in the gardens, that text was classified as the highlight of his day.

Me: knew you’d boss it!

#

On Saturday, things turned from boring to worse. They had agreed to go out since it was their first weekend home and Saturday nights were Gino nights. 

Even though he had scarcely been out their sight for four months, his mom was still straight in at his arm when they got out the car. It wasn’t a complaint, he was just noticing and maybe even a little bit appreciative of the protectiveness as sometimes the echoes of loneliness crept up on him unexpectedly.

They were met with a teary smile, hugs and the firmest, most arm-wrenching handshake he had had in his life. Gino babbled, touching on just about every emotion under the sun about Mark’s journey as they stood, trapped, at the door. Gino’s emotional re-imagining of Mark’s Martian expedition was only just slightly shorter than Mitch’s and Venkat’s debrief, but infinitely more teary. Overall, Mark couldn't decide which one he preferred.

“-And then, when you dropped to the water! Mark! Oh, we cried - we cried, we cried, we cried - we cried so much we almost got our insurance to pay out for flood damage!” A polite laugh from his parents and a smile from himself got him another hug before Gino ushered them inside to the booth near the back they had phoned ahead for. Facing the wall might not be the most appealing view but it kept them away from the windows and their backs to the rest of the patrons which were things that Watneys had to think about now.

It didn’t take long, however, for what was meant to be a homecoming dinner to turn sour. It started with one woman who turned towards their table, acted confused and turned away like she was lost - something none of the three of them had clocked onto. Yet, before their food was even on the table they had been visited by six more diners with a similar ‘lost’ charade - all of whom had their phones in their hands. It was only a few minutes after that when screeching halts could be heard from well within the restaurant, making most of the diners turn towards the windows. A scuffle of voices followed the screeching brakes as Gino himself awkwardly jogged to the entrance, his hands up and waving a dish towel. It was Mark’s mom’s hand against his arm and her disappointed nod towards a new waiter standing by their table that had him click it all together. Mark Watney and his parents were back in Chicago for that classic deep-dish at the best joint in town - and this was news worthy. 

The apologetic waiter helped them out the back door while Gino held off the press at the front. Their car was pulled round and as they clambered inside, several pizzas and sides and desserts and seemingly whatever else had been cooking or prepared at their moment of escape had been dumped on the back seat beside Mark. 

“We’re so sorry, we swear we didn’t tell anyone you were comin’-”

“It’s okay, we’re getting kind of used to this.” His dad reassured the staff out the driver’s window before setting off back home. Mark knew he shouldn’t feel guilty about it, but that cold spill ran down his back anyway.

It was an awkward few silent minutes where no one was quite sure of the emotion to display. Mark could see his dad’s hands tighten around the steering wheel and relax again as if he couldn’t make up his mind whether to be angry or not. His mom was just sitting in the passenger seat, softly sighing and shaking her head almost imperceptibly, as if she wanted to give the news crews a ‘good talking to’ in her most Mom voice. Mark was neither angry or disappointed, just resigned. He had sort of just accepted that this was his life now after the first incident when he tried to get into his apartment in Houston. This sort of constant swarm of press that jumps out of nowhere only forty minutes after he gets somewhere was not the type of press he wanted to mingle with. He couldn’t do anything about it, not really. He wasn’t a real celebrity of film or music where they could politely or aggressively ask for respectful privacy. Mark was part of a very public domain - NASA was legally obligated to be utterly transparent which meant that any staff were too… unfortunately Martian astronauts seemed to be awfully high on the celebrity list at the minute. 

“I’m sorry, I should’ve known - we’ll have to just order in from now on.” 

“No, Mark, don’t apologise, this isn’t anyone’s fault, son-” 

“Well, it’s the press’ fault. Vultures.” His mom’s sullen disappointment had turned to a sour bite as she hissed out her last word onto the extra boxes of food on her knee.

Without asking or reminding him, his dad circled the block a few times before moving onto the next, making redundant circles in streets he hadn’t even been on, just in case anyone was following them. The last thing either the three of them wanted were press outside his parents’ real home, here in Chicago. Maybe it was his childish attachment to the place he grew up but that was his, not the world’s. 

By the time they had got onto their street, the grey skies had opened and Mark was feeling it particularly difficult to keep that ever-ready smirk at his lips. It was wearing him down that every radio station his dad had flicked to in the car was reading out reports of 'Mark Watney, Martian Hero, seen downtown in Gino’s-’, only twenty minutes after they had been ran out. He was tired from being chased away from places he wanted to go to, tired of phoning people ahead of arrival for special seating requests - tired of doing normal things that seemed to be newsworthy. The rest of the crew felt the same. Each of them had their own niche news-market. Chris and Beth had a segment on most female-aimed shows while cameras followed both of them around in the hope they catch them together. Commander Lewis gets followed to see what she does in her ‘down-time’ since the world finds her too uptight at all her other times. Martinez is the newest Latino family-man, with interviews on just about every Spanish speaking show - he also got asked to model for a watch company but he declined after Mark and Chris almost puked with laughter at the test shots. Vogel was a much smaller niche in the Americas and he was glad for it. In Germany, celebrity life was apparently quieter anyway and he managed to get away with going places most of the time, except for a few determined people and some younger fans (those ones he didn’t mind so much). Mark, however, didn’t have a niche. Chicago-grown Cubs-fan with a love of deep-dish was the all American hero with that quick wit and snarky sense of humour who conquered Mars and was still easy to get along with. That wasn’t a niche, that was everything American media wanted. Still, he knew it was better than dying on Mars.

So his first week home, _really home_ , had been marred by press and he supposed that now there was a hint that he was back in town, his time in Chicago was limited. Or at least tainted now that news crews were going to start circling prominent areas. Despite that, he couldn’t stay inside for the rest of his time in Chicago, he still needed to get out and maybe see some people he had missed and he wouldn’t mind going down the pier or even visiting some old professors. And what he’d give for a Cubs game. How he’d get there, survive it, and get home without being seen or followed was a bridge he would cross when he got there. Above that, he still needed to get back to Houston and apartment hunt for getting back to work. He had discussed his time limits with Teddy, Mitch and Venkat and they had concluded that he had until November before he should come back - even though it was Mark that had forced their arm in bringing his date forward after discovering that sitting about wasn’t doing any good for him. 

In the meantime, however, he was stuck at home but at least he had company tonight and everyone seemed to be in the same dour mood. With the tv on something boring, the conversation all but dead and the pizza more cold than warm, it was a bitter first Saturday night back in Chicago with the rain beating off the windows. Yet, with the comfortable couch with memories knitted into it’s fabric, the loving weight of his mom on the other side of the couch, her feet tucked up at his thigh and his dad in his armchair where he always has been, he didn’t think he could find anything to really complain about. 

#

It had been the longest he had slept straight through since he got back to Earth - and before he left. He had left his parents in front of the tv at half ten last night and now, as he eyed the clock on the wall of his room, it was almost midday. He took those last twenty minutes before noon just to lie there and take it in. His room had changed a lot over the years, but some aspects still remained. Aspects like the photo of himself as a toddler in his mom’s arms at Disneyland, or his first telescope set that now lay dusty on a shelf partially disassembled. On the wall behind a door was a Cub’s poster from a winning streak from long ago and beside that four pins still in place where a poster used to be. It had been the most embarrassing poster of some bikini-clad girl that he had ripped out a magazine in time for some of his high school friends coming over and then taken it down after they left - just so they thought he was cooler than he felt he was. Still, the pins sat there in a dusty reminder of trying to impress others before being himself. The rest of his room was fairly similar, old memories marked in the books and objects on display. On the top of his drawers were water rings from plant pots he used to have - evidence that he hadn’t always been a careful botanist, but he had always been into plants. Which hadn’t always played in his favour while he was growing up. But plants had got him to Mars, plants had him _living_ on Mars for all that time and plants had made him a huge celebrity - so how’s that for ‘super lame’? 

“‘Super lame’ my ass, potatoes save lives.” Muttering to himself as he reached to his bedside cabinet for his phone. Flicking the home button, he glanced at the time again in hope that he hadn’t actually slept for fourteen hours, but with disappointing confirmation he went to scroll through a surprising amount of messages.

King Mitchard: sorry about this Mark, we’ve tried to tell them to lay off, but they keep quoting that we’re public domain. Let me know if you’re dealing or not. Mitch.

Teddybear Sanders: Mark, we’ve told the press to keep it low and they said they would, hope that helps.

With two messages at either ends of the scale, Mark tended to lean towards Mitch in times like these and trust that, if anything, the press were always going to be assholes over merciful.

Annie-Bannannie: Mark what the FUCK were you thinking?? Gino’s?? On a Saturday night?? Are you fucking insane???? Or do you just hate me????? Have you changed my contact name yet because I’m gonna be pissed if you haven’t.

Alright, so maybe Mark could admit that Gino’s on a Saturday night was a bad idea but it wasn’t like he knew he was going to get caught. He thought maybe the people of Chicago would’ve been nice to another family from Chicago just getting some dinner and for them to not call the press like the police at the scene of a crime. But what he was gathering from these messages was that despite the press probably not catching a visual, he was on the news and it wasn’t local and it definitely wasn’t national either, it was international.

VKitKat: Tough breaks on Gino’s, what’s a man to do for pizza these days? Really, though, sorry Mark, the press are animals. Shame you couldn't make the Mons meeting - it went really well for her.

The press were animals and despite all this, he was still thinking he got off lightly. It definitely could’ve been worse.

Gino D’Pizza: I’m so sorry marco!! I had to beat them away with sticks until 3am - they wouldn’t let me close in case you came back! I swear, I know all their faces, none of them will be in my home ever again! But you, you any time you like, you just call me and it’s sorted, always on me, always.

Gino had been a friend of Mark’s for years, his dad’s for longer, and Gino always had a place (and a discount) for the Watney’s. In return, Mark had helped Gino out more than once with getting that ‘rustic plant’ feel in his restaurant or ‘home’ as Gino called it, and now various types of ivy were criss-crossed over the ceiling, giving Gino’s a little something extra. But it was more than just a family friend's restaurant, Gino’s restaurant was another place Mark would call home, like Gino does, and Mark felt just as guilty for the press at Gino's door as he did at his parent’s. 

Me: no worries Gino! sorry they were at you so late, if i’d known i’d have come back to rescue you. and don’t give me so much free food again, i’m gonna have a heart attack with all this cheese.

Gino D’Pizza: But you’ll be happy. Cheese makes people happy. Gino’s cheese makes people very very happy

Me: yeah, well i’m ecstatic. and fat.

Gino D’Pizza: Good. When are you coming back?

Me: soon! you can’t keep us away, maybe the end of next week or until the press chill out at your door.

Gino D’Pizza: I will let you know when they leave, marco

Me: thanks Gino! 

Fortunately for both of them, an army of press couldn’t keep Mark or his parents away from Gino’s, or at least, couldn’t keep Gino from sending someone to their house with delivery if the press were camped out. Shifting in his bed, he reached to put an arm behind his head and carry on through his list of messages.

Doctor Who: sucks to be you!! but seriously, rather you than me buddy

Me: hey, don’t be mean to me or i might just tip off on date night. They might know you’re legit, but they don’t know when you’re out being cute.

Doctor Who: and suffer the consequences from Beth? yeah right, you wouldn’t risk it

Me: really i’d be more scared of what CL would do to me if she found out i leaked it, never mind beth

Not that Mark would ever give out any details on Chris and Beth, but it was always something to dangle in front of them. Unfortunately they were playing a risky game. Yes, the press knew about them as a couple now, but would that mean the press would give them space? Absolutely not. Mark was just surprised they hadn’t _increased_ the watch over them.

Commander M Lewis: Hey, Mark, sorry to hear about Gino’s, I know you were missing it.

Me: where’s all your emoji’s gone?

Commander M Lewis: Chris made fun of me for having them so I dropped them.

Me: that asshole.

If Mark knew anything it was that Chris Beck did not _intimidate_ Commander Lewis into dropping her strangely detailed obsession with emoji’s, but instead, she had dropped them in order to make him feel bad for trying in the first place. All Mark could do was laugh at Chris' misfortune and think that, in this case, Mark was glad it was Chris and not him.

Ricky Martin-ez: heard about u and ginos man, that sucks, that pizza was unreal. next time ur there (cause i know ur goin back) tell gino i said hey. And ur mom’s looking great (not being weird, marissa made me say it).

Me: i’m telling my mom youre hittin on her

He didn’t wait to see what Martinez was going to write back to that as he exited the thread and scrolled on to find that he was finally out of unread messages. The next one down was a previously-read thread from him and Mindy, but no new messages were there. Still, his thumb had already clicked to her thread and scrolled up a few messages just for the sake of it.

Mindy: Presentation was fine, Venkat didn’t cry but neither did I. Success.

Mindy was beyond beginning to be a good friend, she was really starting to feel like an extension to the AresIII team now. She was good company, a nice person, her cat is called Avocado and she was funny after she found her calm - funny before it too, but for different reasons. He could sort of understand that their first meeting might have been held up because she felt it a bit odd to tell someone they had been under their eye for over two years, but it was still a push for him to accept it. He felt like he struggled to get across to her how in debt he felt and every time she shrugged it off, he felt like he was being pushed further into the red. She was just too nice, too forgiving, to want someone else to be in debt to her so she waves it off like it’s nothing - but it wasn’t nothing, it was his life and everything NASA did to help him was only because she started it. A long yawn broke his thought process and had him considering getting up when his phone buzzed in his hand.

Mom: Are u up? Breakfast/lunch is out (hint: it’s pizza)

Me: yeah, i’ll be down in 5.

Mom: Make it 3 unless you want cold pizza.

Even at thirty he could tell when he was being chastised by his mom. Slipping his arms into an old college hoodie he had lying at the end of his bed, he made his way down stairs, running a hand through unruly hair. When the smell of pizza hit him, he wasn’t sure if he had crossed the line of ‘too much of a good thing’. Gino’s pizza wasn’t something people ever had enough of, but perhaps as breakfast after a dinner of it the night before was pushing it. Still, it would make his mom happy to see him eating something ridiculously thick since she was still worried about his weight - not that she needed to be, but obviously seeing the state he landed in had stuck with her. He was just glad she didn’t see him when he got back on the Hermes.

“Mornin’.” Mark yawned again. “I didn’t mean to sleep so late.” 

“Afternoon.” His mom emphasised with a raised brow, sitting a glass of water down beside him. “It’s okay, honey, you must’ve needed it.” 

“Yeah, especially after all this driving, you must be exhausted.” His dad’s sarcastic nature had weeded it’s way into Mark by the age of fourteen - something many of his middle and high school teachers liked to complain about.

“I would chip in if I had my license, okay?” His dad raised his palms to surrender at Mark’s accusive reassurance. 

“When do you get it back?” His mom asked calmly, she would never be sick of driving him around now he was here, but that didn’t mean Mark liked relying on his mom as a free taxi at thirty years old. 

“They haven’t said, but I guess they’d give me it when I go back to work, so, November?” He shrugged and started on his pizza as his mom nodded but his dad looked thoughtful.

“That’s months away, what’re you supposed to do for all that time? Pay for taxis?” 

“Well, it’s not like they’re not paying me well, dad.” 

The rest of his afternoon was spent inside, trying not to display how being trapped like this was making him feel. He had been managing so far because he trusted that Annie knew best, despite last night's fuck up, but after a fleeting thought compared his parent's house to HAB, he was starting to feel physically uncomfortable. He could never leave the HAB without his suit and helmet, that much was absolute, but now, he couldn't leave the house without a chaperone and an escape plan. And now, the two were overlapping in his mind, creating a great sense of freedom when he stepped outside, but not one without strings attached that told him the HAB and the house were still his base - whether he liked it or not. 

#

When faced with pizza for dinner, Mark decided it was time to escape. It took a bit of convincing but he won the argument with his logic of ‘if I don't know where I'm going, how will the press?’. It did take a good hour though and he did feel like he was negotiating curfew at fifteen again, but grabbing a set of keys and a half charged phone, he felt capable enough to handle whatever was going to happen. 

He thought of dropping by Gino’s to say thanks but since he had no idea if the press were sitting in wait or not, he thought better of it. Mark had even thought about just going to a supermarket and picking up some things but even on a Sunday night there had to be better things to do than that. 

He ended up in the second bar he came across which was, coincidentally, an old college hang-out of his. It was also very helpful in terms of hiding out since the bar was only lit by neon signs and light bulbs that hadn't been changed since before he was born. Better still, he didn't recognise any of the tenders and nor were there any ridiculous “Martian Hero Bar”signs he had been hearing of in places he might have only ever been to once.

Sitting up at the bar, Mark was quickly understanding the feeling of ‘alone in a room of people’. Or that was until the already tipsy tall blonde two to his right shifted to one to his right and said hello. 

#

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this took a million years i am sorry. we've went back in time a little bit, just to cover mark turning up in chicago. also, im sorry its so long. i was going to split it but its on the same timeline so i couldn't justify it. anyway, as always, let me know how youre taking it + don't forget to shout at me to hurry up with the next lot @greglet on tumblr.


	15. Chapter 15

It felt like home itself, standing in the airport with her mom’s arm around her and Avocado’s box in her hand, lifting him out to the side. Mindy was always glad to go home - it really did give her the break from her work she never thought she needed until she was gone. And in true Seattle style, it was raining and dismal outside, but the conversation between her and her mom was opposite. They spoke animatedly about conversations they had had on the phone, about things particularly shocking, about Mindy’s recent find, her fame (in the form of the online article), Avocado and her mom’s neighbours. They only hit a few of the topics Mindy knew they had in their arsenal to expand upon, but they had a full week to do the rounds.

While it was only a few months since she had been home, Mindy mentioned how it felt far longer, but her mom put this down to the drastic changes that had happened to and around her, and Mindy had to agree. Since she was last here she had befriended the astronaut she spent two years of her life watching over, met the rest of the crew, made another eagle-eyed sighting on Mars and even managed to keep a few seeds alive thus far. 

She might have changed and had her situation change around her, it was still nice to come to a place that seemed static. The warm wooden floors than ran throughout clicked deeply at her heels, the rolling of her case echoing in the hall. The same scent of wood, lavender and her mom’s shampoo engulfed her just beyond the front door - something she always forgot how much she missed. The grey walls were never as cold as they both had assumed when they realised they bought four tins of grey paint over the cream they had been aiming for, but instead, they made the Park household personal and gentle with the dark green firs outside. 

Letting Avocado out his crate was not unlike loosing an arrow or charging a rocket as he shot across the room to stay as far away from Mindy for the next few hours. She couldn’t blame him for going in a mood with her after all those hours in a tiny box, and it wasn’t like he would ever understand the logic of it, but she knew he’d get over it eventually - or just in time to get put back in the box for the return leg.

Her room, like the house, was not full of childhood memories since this was not the one she grew up in. This house still did have memories of birthdays and Christmas’ gone by - just more recent ones. Still, her mom hadn’t missed her chance to line the scarce shelves and flat surfaces of the little furniture Mindy had in her room here with previous awards, trophies and photo frames from her younger years. Namely, the participation medals for her months spent in softball hell. These dull artifacts were followed by a series of science certificates from her school years. The only thing she could see that would be any use or interest to her now was her dusty telescope from the birthday that rocketed her obsession with space. It was powerful enough to work well on clear nights, and it fueled many science reports, but it was no James Webb. Or even Hubble. 

The rest of her space was furnished in the way all away-from-home student’s rooms in new houses were; plainly and briefly. There might be pictures and awards on shelves and in frames, but they were only taken out of boxes and placed accordingly, they never earned their places. Still, the uncluttered space was well suited to her liking, and as she threw open her case she aimed to keep it uncluttered for her stay. Her mom had turned up to perch on the end of her bed by the time she was halfway done. They spoke of dinner before her mom switched immediately to talk of how much their neighbours wanted to hear about Mindy, and how much they wanted to see her, too.

“Have you invited them over?” 

“Just a couple-” 

“ _Mom_ ” Flipping her case closed with frustration, she specifically told her mom before she arrived not to invite anyone over. “Mom, please, you know what they’re gonna want to know and I don’t want to talk about it.” 

Her mom’s hands were up in defence, but Mindy’s eyes were still pleading for her to cancel. “Look, it’ll be fine,” Her mom tried to reassure but Mindy was already sighing in defeat; her first night back would be a three hour interview. “I’ve already told them not to bring up anything astronaut related-”

“Mom, that’s _worse_ ,” She might have only taken one psych module in college to keep her grades up and degree diverse, but she knew as well as any common sense thinker that telling someone not to do something almost guarantees that they will. “You said I needed to take a break - talking about work isn’t a break.”

“That’s why I’m making you do it now, get it out the way, otherwise they’ll be rattling the windows all week.” Ever since her mom’s neighbours found out Mindy was at NASA, they felt they had a type of superiority over the rest of the world. It also meant Mindy got the occasional e-mail asking whether or not NASA _actually_ put artifacts and rats on Mars or not, and whether the UFO sighting over some part of the world was real or if area 51 had aliens. Maybe her mom was right then, to get it out the way within the next few hours so she can have the rest of her week in peace. “And I think Lizzie is bringing her nephew, so, be nice.” 

“Now I’m babysitting?” Mindy raised her brow and her hands went to her hips in a rare display of the confidence she only found at home. “Some holiday.” 

“I don’t think he’d appreciate that at twenty nine, Mindy.” Sheepishly, her mom pursed her lips and glanced to her hands, sensing the oncoming huff from her daughter. 

“Mom, you are _not_ setting me up - I don’t even live here, how would that work out? Wow, you’re great but, see you in eight months time!” 

“I didn’t say marry him, Mindy, I said ‘be nice’.” Her mom ignored the look she was being drawn, “Besides, maybe he’d move for you.” 

“What a conversation opener - ‘and how do you feel about Houston?’” Mindy’s acting of her best questioning glance morphed into sigh and a low dip in her brow as her mom told her off for being dramatic and left her to mope. She had just enough time to wash the feel of ‘domestic flight’ off and get dressed again before the neighbours started to turn up. It turned into a quick flow after the first set, followed by a delivery of far too much Chinese food in the middle. Eventually, the nephew turned up and Mindy tried not to show the small flare of immediate interest she felt. 

Ultimately there was a small gathering of a dozen neighbours, occasional plus ones and themselves, making it around twenty in attendance. It meant that Mindy could only be ambushed by a few at a time since smaller conversations broke off around them. She tried to escape by offering her mom help in the kitchen with the food, by offering to get people drinks, by offering to take people’s jackets and then take five full minutes to hang them up down the hall. Her mom eventually caught her being hesitant and overly helpful and sent her off to mingle with a sharp pointed finger. She was then herded into a group of gossiping neighbours no fewer than three seconds later.

“Mindy, Mindy, tell us-” A mischievous glance passed between the group as Mindy was pulled down to sit between them all on the couch. “What did you find on Mars?” 

“Oh, I found a volcano.” How much she wanted to roll her eyes at herself for saying she ‘found a volcano’ but apart from not wanting to talk about her work, she didn’t want to overcomplicate the situation by being too exact. 

“Yes, _this_ time you found that volcano, but what about last time?” Mindy felt herself physically shrink - she knew this would’ve come up, but she didn’t think it would’ve happened so soon. 

“Well, I saw a few things - like clean solar pa-”

“You saw that lovely astronaut, didn’t you?” Mindy wasn’t even sure which neighbour it was that was dictating her conversation and had her hand firmly grasped, but she was sure she definitely didn’t like her much. 

“Eventually, yes.” Mindy admitted, but she closed up all the same, any questions from now on would be getting the same tight lipped answers until she was rescued.

“And then when he came back you met him, didn’t you?” All the other ladies were quietly engrossed around her, like children at a novel reading, but she didn’t want to give them anything, it felt like such a betrayal. “Tell us, Mindy, what was he like?” 

“Uh, just normal, really, just like anyone.” That was a lie, but it came out so quick she seemed to get away with it.

“Oh, Mindy,” There was a laugh in her voice and the rest of the ladies giggled, but it didn’t quite reach her eyes. There was a digging going on for details Mindy was certain she didn’t have. “There must be more to the story than that, what did he say to you?” 

“Well, he said thanks for seeing him-” 

“Well, now, your mom didn’t say you were on a date with him?” 

“Oh, no- I mean, for see-spotting him on Mars-” While Mindy heated up she received a pat on her hand that was still caught in the vice of the pack leader’s own while the four other ladies around her, including the brunette she recognised as Lizzie, giggled again. 

“We know, we know, we’re just joking.” A bony elbow was fired into her ribs and she forced a nervous smile. “But, what else did he do for you? That Mark always seems so gracious in his interviews, saying thanks can’t have been everything?” 

She cleared her throat and took a breath, stalling to think up some of way of saying what happened that didn’t make it sound like it was anything more than what it had been. “He took the staff out for drinks to say thanks.” 

“That sounds better.” The lady nodded and the rest of the woman had created a circle around her, hanging on every word. Mindy had started to think that vagueness had been her saving grace and that she could skim this conversation on bland, slightly incorrect and impersonal information. At least this way she might not feel so guilty for talking about it.

“But there was another time, wasn’t there-” Another lady with big blonde curls and dripping in pink was cut off before she could say anything else. 

“Yes, Edith, you’re right,” The woman who was still grasping Mindy’s hand spoke over her, taking back control of the conversation. “Yes, we saw on the Houston local news that there was another night out, wasn’t there? With the crew? And the directors?”

Mindy felt like she had been caught, or at least backed against a wall and while fight or flight was definitely in play, she remained vague. “Yes, they went to one of the places downtown.” 

“You were there, too, weren’t you?” Before Mindy could open her mouth to answer, the lady answered for her. “Yes, and from the video that other person had taken,” The lady tutted ironically and winked and Mindy, “it would seem you and Mark are quite close now?” 

“No, not really.” That felt like another lie, but even she wasn’t sure.

“Really? That’s not what we heard - the media really are terrible aren’t they.” The women around her, including Lizzie and the one she discovered to be Edith, nodded in sync, agreeing the media were awful, but Mindy didn’t doubt they scoured the news for any word - especially since they seemed to be in on the Houston local, too. “But, then, what’s this your mom said about seeds?” 

“Seeds?” Mindy raised her eyes to glance for her mom who, had she been visible, would be in so much trouble.

“Yes, he brought you seeds.” The lady insisted and Mindy was out of ways to stall her answer. 

“Yes, they’re in my apartment, my neighbour is watering them for me.” She was a little surprised just how defensive she felt over these seeds when someone else was talking about them.

“You would trust you neighbour like that? With seeds from Mark?” It was starting to annoy her that they were calling him ‘Mark’ like they knew him, and were prodding Mindy for information on him for their own personal gossip. 

“Well, she’s quite good at keeping my cat alive when I’m at work, so, I’m sure she can manage a pot of dirt.” Questioning her choice in plant-babysitter was too much. Maybe Mindy had been a little hesitant when she left her seeds in Claire’s hands, but they were capable hands and really, seeds were seeds. She was sure Mark wouldn’t cut her out for killing them if the worst happened. 

“Plants are so fickle, they could die with almost no indication-” The woman flipped her free hand as if she knew all about plants and their intricate ways, but Mindy wasn’t having it any more.

“I don’t think so, so far I’d say they’re very resilient.” Especially after a round or two with Avocado, her seeds seemed to be pretty strong. 

“Who told you that, dear? Mark? Then I suppose you and he would know best.” There was an edge on her tone, the one older people get when they think they’re smarter than those who are younger, just because of their advancing years. As if degrees and education are folly and ageing was true knowledge. Mindy didn’t doubt that age gives experience, but spending time learning and honing skills was not for nothing. 

“He’s a _botanist_ , he knows quite a bit about plants - they helped him survive-” 

“Yes, he would know a lot about plants, still, it’s a bit strange for a _man_ to know about plants, I always thought that, like most things that grow, they would need a woman’s touch.” The lady looked to Mindy as if for her thoughts on the matter, but instead, Mindy snatched her hand back and stood.

“I think my mom’s looking for me, I better go.” She didn’t stay to see the look of disgust or displeasure when she left, but made her way to the kitchen for the drink she felt she deserved. Fishing herself a cool glass, she rolled it against her forehead as she scoured her cupboards for that bottle of vodka she knew her mom kept. She was deep in the back of a cupboard, fingers splayed to catch the neck of the bottle she could spy when a voice startled her enough to make her clatter several bottles off one another as she quickly retracted her hand in fright and bump her head off the open cupboard door above her. 

“Maybe I should’ve waited until you were out the cupboard.” 

“Maybe.” She agreed before she stood, carefully, resting the vodka bottle and her glass on the counter before raising her eyes to find herself look at the nephew - whose name no one bothered to tell her. “I’m Mindy.”

“Andy, Lizzie’s nephew.” He tilted his head in his aunt’s direction and Mindy nodded. “You’re all she’s been talking about for three days now, y’know.” 

That didn’t help her complexion much, and when she tried to tell him he was exaggerating, he didn’t drop it. 

“No, really, I think I know more about you than myself, now.” He smiled at her and she felt herself mirror it, but her smile turned sheepish. 

“I wouldn’t take what she’s been saying as the truth, I think they’ve got some of their facts mixed up.” Mindy admitted, hoping to cast some doubt onto whatever it was he thought he knew. Although, maybe the facts weren’t untrue, just the tone in which they delivered was. 

“So, you’re not dating that astronaut guy?” Andy smirked, his bright blue eyes obviously hopeful. 

“I think if that’s what they’ve been saying, you shouldn’t be trusting the rest of their information.” Mindy answered, watching Andy physically relax as if that had been the hard part, while she felt like she had been evasive. She supposed, though, he wasn’t hard to look at and he would definitely be easy to be nice to. He had an easy going smirk, the stubble wasn’t _un_ attractive and while he was about a foot taller than her, he wasn’t lording.

“They’re really bad for taking what they read as bible, have you noticed?” Andy helped himself to a beer out the crate in the fridge that a generous neighbour brought as Mindy raised a brow. 

“Yeah, I’ve noticed.” Not only had she noticed, but she had been subjected to it for longer than she had imagined. “I think my mom knows not to after I keep telling her, but the rest of them… - I don’t really know your aunt though, she might not-”

“Oh, she does.” Andy reassured. “She’s probably just as bad as Margot - the one who had you trapped by the hand, she does that to everyone.” Mindy reached to unconsciously rub at her hand as Andy mentioned it. “But my aunt Lizzie… she won’t believe a word unless it comes from the tv - or the news websites, and not even the good ones.” 

“I guess that’s not their fault, it’s not like the tv is going to tell them to fact check.” Mindy poured in her mixer and returned bottles and ice trays back to where they came from.

“But the rocket scientist does and they still don’t believe her.” It was an obvious flirt, but Mindy still had to correct him. 

“I’m the last person you would want near a rocket, trust me.” Taking a sip of her drink, she happily realised she might have overdone it on the vodka, but with the way Margot was trying to catch her eye from the couch, she might be needing it. “Really, I’m barely a scientist - think ‘long range topography photographer’.” 

“Ah, I see.” Raising his eyes as he thought on it, Andy squinted as his mind worked. “Or, I guess, you see.” He laughed, ducking his head and shaking it. “That was so terrible, I’m sorry.” 

“It’s fine, I’ve made worse jokes at myself.” But she supposed he didn’t need to hear the different job descriptions she gave herself while she felt worthless watching Mark struggle across Mars. “What about you?”

“What do I do?” Mindy nodded at his question, sipping her drink as he shrugged. “Technically I have a degree in politics so naturally I get thrown out with a camera I can’t work to local council meetings to ask a couple of questions, that get ignored, and then write about it and add in my terrible photos, and then it doesn’t get published anyway.” Mindy’s lips were a pursed smirk, trying not to laugh at the incredibly disappointed description of his own job. “It’s okay, you can laugh, I know it’s shit.” She felt bad about it, but he laughed with her and for a moment she managed to forget that this night was actually stressful. 

“So, what do you want to do? Be a politician?” 

“And be disowned by my own family? I don’t think so, but I wouldn’t mind teaching - I just need to get in the right circles first.” Andy shrugged it off, cracked the cold beer he had been hanging onto open and took a sip. “To sound lame, it’d be nice to give the next generation hope for politics, I guess.” 

“That’s not lame.” Giving him a smile, he was quick to return it and move the subject back to her. 

He turned to conversation back to her, asking exactly what she did since ‘long range topographical photographer’ couldn’t be her real title. She explained a bit further, and then more so when he asked or pressed her for more information. It hit her eventually that while she had told herself not to talk about work, it wasn’t unpleasant. Eventually he started asking about Olympus Mons, and since she was only just out her presentation the day before, she was more than equipped to answer all about it.

“Alright, well, I could tell something was happening when there were more iggy - igneous rocks landing around the volcano and seeing that it was expanding… like, when volcanoes erupt on Earth, their surface expands,” Moving her hands apart as if to gesture the slight but great expansion the surface experiences, “And that’s happened on Mars, obviously, Mons is the biggest volcano in the system, that we know of, so it’s quite exciting to be able to see it erupt and see what happens with it.” 

“Exciting?” Andy raised a brow and Mindy’s smile faltered. 

“I just mean, it’ll bring us lots of data about how Mars formed and things like that.” She hadn’t expected to be trying to cover up her genuine enthusiasm for Mons with someone she thought she was getting on well with, but maybe she had misjudged. 

“You’re a bit of a nerd, aren’t you?” 

“No one’s called me that for a while.” Mindy said bluntly, suddenly missing Venkat or even the other SatCom staff - there was always safety in numbers. 

“I bet, you work with too many of them.” Andy laughed, but he was laughing by himself which he quickly realised. “I said the wrong thing, haven’t I?” Mindy said nothing, just gave him a pursed smile in reply, but it was enough to have him apologising. “I didn’t mean it in a bad way, you’re just really _into_ Mars and I’ve never met anyone that into space shit before. It’s cute.”

It wasn’t an excuse, and she didn’t appreciate it being called ‘cute’, but Mindy let him off as she heard her mom in the back of her mind telling her to ‘be nice’, so she gave him a smile and flicked her hand in a gesture to forget about it. She spent the next hour standing around her kitchen with him, talking about not much of anything and working past the small hiccup that he occasionally referred back to with embarrassment. Eventually they had been pushed, pulled and moved out the way by people trying to go outside for smoke since the rain stopped that they decided to go out themselves. Standing distinctly upwind from any smokers, they carried on their conversation about Seattle, which seemed to be one of the few things they could agree on. 

“I dunno, Mindy, I think Twilight was pretty close: raining, cold, cloudy, grumpy fuckin’ citizens who fight in the woods - that’s pretty legit.” Finishing off his third beer since they started the conversation, he dumped it in the trash on his left.

“No way, Twilight was filmed in Vancouver anyway-” 

“Maybe some of it, but they filmed a bit here, too, and the books were definitely here. Now, listen, from a local viewpoint, I’m saying they painted it accurately - I’m not saying there’s vampires in the trees, alright?” 

“Are you saying you read the books?” Mindy asked, more than feeling the three and a half vodka’s she’d been pouring herself. 

“Are you saying you didn’t?” At Mindy’s evasive and weak denial, they both started laughing. The night had changed since she met Andy and she was feeling a bit more comfortable around him now, but she was still saying that it was alcohol and not his personality which, although was mostly good natured, Mindy still had a few irks around some things he had said in passing. Or maybe she was over-exaggerating what she had heard. Maybe she was a little drunk. 

“So, how does Houston compare to the vampire-infested Seattle?” Andy asked, his s’ slurring. 

“Well, it’s not as wet, not as cold and definitely less coffee shops - still way too many, but not as many as here.” Mindy nodded to herself as she thought on it. “The people aren’t particularly nice, they wouldn’t go out their way for you… and the animal cops show in Houston makes me cry whenever I see one of their cars out.” 

“And it’s an astronaut hotspot, right?” 

“Yes, loads of astronauts, like, probably the same ratio that Seattle has for vampires that Houston has for astronauts.” 

“So like, one main family of astronauts that get visited by other astronauts?” 

“Basically.” Mindy agreed, nodding her head a little too much to convince anyone she was sober. At the last smoker to leave the patio, their conversation died a little as Mindy glanced up. The lights from behind her and the lights from the houses around her did ruin the view of the stars by quite a bit, but somehow it still beat those pictures on her screen. 

“I don’t mean to pry, but my aunt showed me the video of you and Mark and the crew dinner - are you guys… y’know? Together?” 

“Didn’t you ask me this already?” Screwing up her face as she remembered a faint conversation from many hours ago that sounded a lot like this one.

“Yeah, but, you didn’t really give me an answer, earlier.” That was right, it came back to her now, she carefully evaded. But now, with the drink in her, ‘careful’ was long gone.

“Yeah, we’re not anything, just friends, I guess.” A small smile touched her lips at the thought - it was the first time she’d said it out loud without any stress and it felt comfortable, but she couldn’t ignore the stretch in her stomach that felt like a lie. 

“My aunt said he gave you seeds, was that just to say thanks?” 

“Yep, they got attacked by my cat once, but they seem to be going okay now - my neighbour’s looking after them.” 

“Do you know what type they are?” Mindy shrugged in answer to the question she seemed to be asked most often - unfortunately, she was no top level botanist and couldn’t identify the seeds from their casing, nor their miniscule stems.

“He hasn’t told me, but everyone keeps asking - he said I’d find out when they bloomed, so I gotta wait.” Warm from the alcohol, she leaned against the wall of her house. “I don't want to talk about Mark though, everyone wants to ask me about him but i feel bad ‘cause it's like I'm selling him out.” 

“I'm sure he wouldn't see it like that, people are just curious.” The light from inside shone off Andy’s dark hair, making him look lighter than he was. 

“Maybe not, but he's too nice to me for me to do that to him.” Mindy yawned, the vodka hitting her a little harder than she had expected as her eyes started to flutter in the night breeze. “I think I'm going in, s’too cold out here.” 

Pushing herself from the wall she stepped slowly back into the house since her spatial awareness had dulled and her balance was even worse than usual. Andy followed behind and she was sure she felt a hand ghost her back.

“The way you talk about him, and smile when you think of him, I don’t think he’s just your friend, Mindy.” 

Mindy spun on her heels to face him, her brow dipped and lip curled. She was so sick of people pushing her into this corner, but before she could tell Andy he was wrong, he spoke over her. 

“I don’t mean that he isn’t your friend, I mean… that’s not all he is to you. People you care about should be your friend too, so it’s not like it’s a bad thing, I just think you gotta own up to it.” 

Still, Mindy wasn’t impressed and no justification would quell the small rage that flared up, even if the red of her anger was more on her face than in her words. “Why is it so hard for everyone to believe that I’m friends with him?” 

“‘Cause you fit too well, you spent two years watching out for him and he finds out he wasn’t by himself that whole time - that’s not difficult, it’s not rocket science, it’s just… common sense, Mindy, you two just work." An embarrassed smirk started to touch his lips, "And this comes from the guy who has been flirting his ass off for four hours and didn't get so much as a receptive smirk." If he was looking for sympathy, Mindy was in no mood to give it to him, especially when she didn't even notice he had been trying so hard. "If you're wondering why you didn't see it, it's 'cause you're preoccupied, Mindy." 

She left him to his own company after that. She was too drunk, too upset and too unsure of her own thoughts to even try and deal with what he said to her. She had waved at her mom to let her know that seven hours of socialising was enough for someone who spent their down time alone, and that she was going to bed. Her mom nodded and let her go, and over the next hour managed to kick most of her guests out, reducing the noise level enough to consider sleep.

Yet, despite the reduction in noise, Mindy was still awake and would be for some time. She didn't want to admit that Andy was right because she tried to strongly believe he couldn't be more wrong. She wanted to be Mark’s friend, she wanted to be in his company, wanted to share early mornings and late nights. She wanted to be his friend but even she conceded that maybe her list of things she wanted to be for him were a little further down the scale from ‘friend’. 

But, if she did have feelings for him, was it a big deal? She concluded that it would only be sad and stupid of her to go down that route after being so sure they were friends. She also concluded, without even thinking about it, that she would be the only one of the two of them _being_ ‘sad and stupid’, since it never crossed her mind that Mark would ever be in the same position. She was close to realising that she still viewed Mark in two different ways; Mark the Martian Hero, celebrity, and hot news, and then Mark, still the incredible astronaut who survived two years on Mars under her watch, but who also brought her seeds, quizzed her on Mars before her presentation and took her out for dinner only a few hours after he met her. Celebrity Mark and kind, genuine, friend Mark were separate entities, but much like her divisiveness between being his friend or any more, she couldn’t seem to marry them and accept there could be both.

She struggled to shut her mind off from the ideas and the tug of her heart, but eventually the drink pulled her over for the night. She didn’t dream, but when she woke up her head was too sore and her throat too dry to remember what had been plaguing her before she fell asleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this took a long ass time. mostly bc i didn't know where to take it, but i think i've got a handle on it now. basically we're just gonna get the show on the road now. Still, havin them in two different places has really just ...shot myself in the foot bc i need to keep the days right in my head which is so difficult omg, but i got it. i got it. i'll get there. eventually. 
> 
> i mean, the good news is the internet in my work has effectively blown up so all i'm doing is typing which is good news for yous!! bad news for me bc i left my stupid notes in the house so half of this is guesswork. anyways. have fun.


	16. Chapter 16

Squinting as she wandered into the kitchen on Saturday morning to find her mom bright and drying the last of the previous night's dishes, Mindy got a unsympathetic tut. 

“Good afternoon.” Sarcastically, her mom raised her brow at her, “Have a nice night?” 

It wasn’t as fuzzy as Mindy would have liked it to be, or had been when her eyes opened under her deep glare, but since then she had managed to piece it together enough to know that no, she didn’t really have a nice night. Instead of moaning about it, however, she smiled and nodded, clinging to a cold glass of water.

“I told you that Alex would be nice, right?”

“Andy, mom.” 

“Just testing.” Her mom smiled, obviously hopeful that something happened between them, or at the prospect of another meeting, but Mindy had to let her down. 

“Mom,” Mindy sighed, conversations like this weren’t fun when she was sober, never mind when she was fighting the drummer in her head, “I didn’t like him, so can you just drop it?” 

Her mom’s smile disappeared and was replaced with real disappointment as she fished two pain relief pills out the medicine cupboard. “What happened? And stop squinting.” 

It hurt to roll her eyes, so Mindy took her pills without an external fight before deciding what excuse to give about Andy. “He was too… honest in his opinions.” 

Her mom was clearly not convinced by her answer but just shook her head and closed the cupboard doors she had opened. “Well, at least you tried - you did try, didn’t you?” Mindy nodded vaguely under her mom’s question, but she couldn’t say she wholeheartedly tried to make herself available for Andy. Eventually, it reached her mom that she wasn't really participating in this conversation and she thankfully moved on. “I thought we could go shopping, y’know, once you’re ready, just us this time.” 

It turned out to be a comfortable afternoon. They wandered around clothes shops and furniture shops, her mom insisting on buying her ‘something nice’ and ‘whatever she wanted’ for ‘finding her volcano’. In the end, she ended up with a set of reclaimed wood photo frames for her flat in Houston. Her mum did herd her into a flower shop that had a small selection of seeds on offer - something her mom had been after since she heard of Mindy’s new inside knowledge. Her mom assumed that with her recent green fingered spurt of luck, she might lend a hand in getting the kitchen a bit more ‘planty’, but, Mindy automatically complained. Mindy’s point, that was completely ignored, was that she actually didn’t do any of the work and she didn’t know the mix in the soil Mark gave her, but her mom was too busy picking out colourful flowers to listen. 

They stumbled into a restaurant for dinner, laden with bags and tired feet. Mindy refused alcohol on sight, still not entirely recovered from the previous night and stuck to water. It was half way through their meal that her mom revealed she wouldn’t be able to stay with her through her days during the week and that she’d have to go to work for a few hours. Mindy waved her off, telling her not to worry about it, that she’d be glad to get a shot of her old car and drive about to the coast or even to some of the walks she used to take. By the time they were finished and heading back to their car, it was dry enough and even clear enough to see the red light of the sunset. 

“Red sky at night, right? Should be nicer tomorrow.” Mindy nodded towards the layered red clouds high in the sky against the watery blues of cleared up rain. 

“Don’t hold your breath, it’ll be raining by midday again.” 

#

They were both right, but her mom wouldn’t have noticed. Mindy woke up far too early on Sunday, but only managed to disturb Avocado as she made her way to the kitchen for something to soothe her tired eyes. It wasn’t quite Mars Time, but it was early enough as she closed the kitchen door quietly behind her before she microwaved herself some tea, finding the idea of coffee a little too violent for half five in the morning. Waiting on her tea, her eyes fell on the lumpy bag of soil sitting in the plant pot with the seeds poking out the edge from yesterday. She left her tea to sit when the microwaved pinged it ready while she rolled up the sleeves on the hoodie she had thrown over her shoulders and emptied the soil into the pot. For being so scared of seeds before, she felt quite at ease filling the pot to over half way, pressing the seeds into the soil and covering over the rest. She watered them and rested them in the middle of the windowsill, hoping the recent bout of rain would be the last before the summer hit. 

Taking her tea from the microwave, she made her way out to the patio and found a seat on a dry patch of the garden furniture that was used more to measure snowfall in the winter than used to soak up summer sun. There was a gentle heat from the sun as she sat, but the steam from the tea was still prominent. She flicked through news pages on her phone as she cleaned her glasses on her hoodie, followed by some e-mails and some social media to find nothing of distinct interest. She brought her feet up rest against the chair opposite her and kept her eyes on the changing sky, growing from red to orange and violet to lavender before evening out into a runny blue with increasing grey. She made her way back inside by eight, surprising her mom who had stepped into the kitchen at the same time.

“I was wondering why the door was closed, I knew I didn’t close it - I’m glad you’re not a burgular.” Stepping over to press a kiss to the side of her head, her mom busied to make a pot of coffee while Mindy washed out her mug of tea. “What do you want to do tod- you planted my seeds-” Her mom went to pick up the pot to survey it, the index finger scraping at the top layer of soil before Mindy lifted it away.

“Don’t touch - just water them twice a day, I’ve already done it for this morning, just don’t forget tonight.” Mindy warned as she placed the pot back to where she had it, twisting it round for the best chance at light. “There were only a few seeds in the packet, so I used them all. 

With a mug of coffee in her hands now, they made it to the couch for a glance at that morning’s news and discussed their plans for the day. Mindy was happy to do nothing, but her mom still wanted to do something active, insisting they should go to the coast while she was still off work. So they packed their car, wellies and waterproof jackets, towels and sunglasses, and drove towards their preferred spot. They walked around the beach without their wellies, but the jackets and hoods were up, sunglasses locked in the car. They walked against the rain until they reached the small beach hut cafe and shed their sodden jackets. 

It didn’t take her mom long to bring up Friday night again by the time they were sat with coffee and a grilled cheese to share. 

“It’s just, he was very handsome, and smiley, and wasn't he interesting? I just thought he’d be good for you, was I wrong?” Her mom asked between sips. 

“No, well, yes, but… he just wasn’t - he was fine, just not for me.” 

“But, _why_ , Mindy, he was smart, he has aspirations, I just think you shut him out too soon.” 

“It wasn’t me that called it off,” With a confused look from her mom, Mindy rolled her eyes, knowing she would ask if Andy had ‘dumped’ her before it started. “Not like that, I just mean, he could tell I wasn’t interested and he wasn’t shy about saying it.” 

“Was that what you meant by too honest?” Bringing up what she had said that morning was only making her feel like she was going round in circles more and more. “If he was too blunt, you should’ve told me.” 

“So you could give him into trouble?” Mindy raised a brow and her mom laughed. “He wasn’t blunt, he was just saying what he saw which was me not being very receptive, or as he said, being preoccupied.” Her voice slipped off at the end as she adjusted in her seat, physically uncomfortable talking about something she was still so muddled about. 

“Preoccupied with what? Margot? I got told she was being particularly gruelling, but I think she’ll leave us alone now.” Her mom had trailed off just as she had when Mindy hadn’t looked up from her coffee, sensing that she had the wrong end up the stick about what Mindy had been ‘preoccupied’ with. 

“Margot was annoying, but he thought that I was preoccupied with other things.” Despite having a strict moral compass not to lie to her own mother, she was having a tough time coming out and saying exactly what Andy had said and meant. Her mom sighed, clearly getting the impression Mindy was holding back, so she urged her on with silence. “He _thought_ I was preoccupied with Mark.” It was the first time she had said that without a roll of her eyes or a flash of denial and fight. She just set her jaw and curled her hands around her mug. “But everyone keeps asking me about him, they made me talk about him for hours last night and then people wonder why I talk about him - ‘cause they _ask_ -” 

“I know, but - and don’t draw me any looks - if it was to happen, it wouldn’t be a surprise, for the people in the know anyway, I bet.” Mindy worried her lip at her mom’s theory, fuzzy memories of Andy saying something similar, about how it was just ‘common sense’, struck her. Not forgetting Venkat, either, who called it ‘logical’. All three terms were both damning and painful to hear since it would seem all independent onlookers had come to all very similar conclusions, and maybe they weren’t as wrong as she had been trying to prove them, but she was more than certain (no matter what Venkat said) that she was on this path alone. 

“Can we stop talking about this now?” She was two hours away by time difference from Mark and neither of them had text the other since Thursday morning. Talking about him like this made her feel jarred and awkward and it definitely wasn’t something she would ever share with him. But her mom agreed to drop it, and for the rest of the afternoon she didn’t bring up anything even close to Mark, space, NASA, satellites or volcanoes. For their walk back they talked about her mom coming to Houston for a change, even just for a weekend, before their conversation slipped into an insulting slam of their guests last night and their choice of clothing while they laughed together. 

While her mom whizzed around the kitchen, singing with the radio and stirring pots for dinner, Mindy sat up on a counter with a small glass of wine in one hand and Avocado in the other. With the pots on the boil, their conversation turned slow as her mom went to flick through her phone and Mindy wiped a drop of wine from the rim of her glass. 

“Y’know, I’m not _saying_ anything, but, just look.” Her mom handed over her phone that Mindy took before she realised what was on it. The headlines of a national news website were listed and zoomed in and Mindy scanned through them before a familiar name jumped out, reassuring the quick clench in her stomach.

_Mark Watney Spotted In Chicago: Watney Family Out For Dinner In Local, Gino’s_

She had clicked on it and scanned it before she wondered if she even wanted to. Finding out they were chased out of a restaurant only the night before, and that the secret was out that he was in Chicago just made her want to cry. They didn’t deserve that, no one did, but the last people to need that were two parents who just wanted to be happy to have their son home. 

“If that was happening to us, I’d be so angry, I don’t know how his parents manage.” Her mom said, shaking her head as she took her phone back. “So disrespectful, like they haven’t been through enough. 

Mindy agreed wholeheartedly; they had been through more than most and the press wouldn’t leave them alone. She grabbed her own phone from her pocket and started to type out a message.

[19:12:42] Heard about Gino’s. What assholes. I hope the rest of your trip is going better. 

“You told me you didn’t have his number.” Her mom called from the hob, trying to keep the accusation out her voice and failing. 

“I did, ages ago, but, he got chased out a restaurant and that’s what you’re complaining about?” Mindy’s evasiveness was clocked by a look from her mom, which resulted in a sigh as she put her phone on the counter, careful not to let her eyes drop to check for new messages. “He swapped with me when he brought me the seeds, remember? So I - or Avie - wouldn’t kill them.” 

“That was a while ago now, wasn’t it?” 

Mindy shrugged as she tried to think back. “A few weeks by now, anyway, but they haven’t grown much yet, but there is green visible above the top layer.” Mindy lifted her glass, finding it more comfortable to talk about her seeds than Mark. “I still don’t know what they are, I guess I’ll find out when they bloom.” 

Her mom said nothing much after that and kept to her word about not bringing up Mark for the rest of the night. Mindy, however, was stuck on him, his bad luck and the incorrigible media. She flicked back to the report to read it through again, feeling worse each time she read how the reporter staged themselves as unfortunate while painting Mark as uncharitable. The blatant disregard for Mark and his parent’s welfare was blindingly hurtful and while she was every bit as sympathetic as she was apathetic, she also had a flare of protectiveness within her. Her mind went as far as to suggest that by spending that time watching him from those satellites, she had been looking out for him - protecting him - and she had been the only one there since everything anyone else saw was filtered through her first. But now, she could do nothing but read revolting reports and eye her message box in the hope of a reply to let her know that yeah, he was pissed too, but he was okay. But, nothing arrived.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thanks to everyone helping with the wee polls on my tumblr bc i might have plans for this, but sometimes i hit a fork in the road and i like having you guys' input, i feel like we're in this together.   
> in other news; next chapter as soon as i finish posting this one bc i'm amazing and wrote 2 at once. (in apology for this one being a little bit bland (until the end (maybe)))


	17. Chapter 17

There wasn’t a video of it, which he was grateful for, at least this wasn’t going to go down like that Justin Bieber scandal. Still, for a Monday, it was the worst Monday in the history of Monday's and not even just in his book, Mark would offer this day up for the worst singular day for any human to experience, ever. While there was no video, there was one blurry picture. And it was very blurry. He was sure that if someone showed him that and said ‘who is this?’ he wouldn’t have said it was himself. Well, at least he was smiling, could be worse, he thought. Although, what did it matter what his face was doing? It was all over the internet regardless. 

What was probably the worst part, after the initial embarrassment of finding himself caught on a one night stand and it going viral online, and then furious texts from Annie, plus the laughter from Rick, Chris _and_ Vogel, was the look on his mom’s face when he got home on Monday morning. Three cabs and a half hour walk had him stumbling in the back door at half eight to both his parents sitting in the kitchen. It wasn’t even an exact look of ‘disappointment’ or ‘anger’, it was just ‘what the _fuck_ , Mark?’, and his mom never swore - with her eyes or otherwise. His dad, on the other hand, looked at him, shrugged hopelessly, and went back to his coffee. The silence that followed was unbearable, humiliating and downright unnecessary. So, the world was laughing at him, he didn’t need his parents acting like children as well.

Escaping his humiliation, he made his way to the gardens to find clumps of his worked flowerbeds uprooted and scattered across the grass he spent honest time cutting into immaculately even stripes. He didn’t expect to find the criminal who caused all this damage, but with a gentle meow from his right, his eyes flicked towards the sound. The offender was proudly lounging across a fence in the corner, tail swinging in mockery. A cat ripping up his garden was the last thing he needed today - all he wanted was a damn break, why were they in such short supply?

“Did you do this?” Pointing to the disarray of stems and clumps of mud at his feet, but with no reply beyond a twitch of the cat’s tail, he stepped a little closer to it. “And was it you shitting in my plants, too?” 

Again, no reply, just that confidently lazy stare that told him everything; yes, this cat shit in his plants and yes, this cat kicked up his flowers. With a frustration stemming from last night’s and this morning’s disaster, he marched towards the cat, his arms up in an attempt to shoo it away, but it refused and hissed at him instead. 

“Hey - hey, don’t go hissin’ at me, you’re the asshole here-” Mark took another step towards to cat who hissed again a little more fiercely for intruding into it’s space. From this distance he could see the cat was a stray, no collar which meant no repercussions from any owner for ruining his work from the past two days. With a sigh, Mark let it go, deciding that he needed a distraction and fucked up flowerbeds could be just enough to work. 

“You’re still a dick.” Pointing at the white cat with a ginger spot on it’s back with his trowel, he turned to scrape out the mess and start again. He got as far as replanting the least damaged flowers and throwing the unsalvageable ones towards the fence under the cat in anger. “Look at how many you killed, you bastard, look at this-” 

“Mark, what the _hell_ are you doing?” His dad, hanging out the patio door, his brow creased in confusion as Mark froze where he was with clumps of dead plants both in his hand and peeling off the fence under an unamused cat. “Someone’s on the phone for you - I think she said her name was Annie?”

“Oh, _Jesus_ ,” Mark dropped the dirt and shredded plants in his hands, mopping a hand off his jeans as he bounded over the flowerbeds to grab the phone - Annie was one person not to keep waiting. With a quick thanks at his dad and roll of his eyes at himself for being caught throwing dirt at a cat, he grabbed the phone and wandered back into the middle of the garden. “Hello? Annie?” 

With a string of cursing and swearing Mark raised one hand to cover his eyes and held to phone out from his ear as Annie went on. She wasn’t usually one to shout, her language worked just as well at conveying her anger at people, but he supposed he hadn’t been giving her an easy time. 

“Mark, do you even fucking realise what you’ve given me?” Mark stayed silent, hoping it was rhetorical since he didn’t want to own up to what he had done just yet. Annie answered with another list of expletives while Mark sunk to the grass, crossing his legs and hunching over with his elbows on his knees. 

“Can I just - Mark, what the _fuck_ were you thinking? Were you thinking? Did your brain turn to shit on re-entry? Are you fucking stupid?!” Mark sighed into the receiver, not sure what he should be saying, but he was quickly growing sick of being shouted at. “Seriously though, what were you thinking? Just so I know?” 

“I was thinking I’ve been in a tin can for two years, a dead planet for another two years, and living with my parents since I got back, I was thinking I might need a bit of time to my goddamn self.” 

“If you wanted time to your goddamn self, jerk off in the shower like a normal lonely person, don’t go out looking for a one night stand and then share it with the entire world.” 

“ _I_ didn’t leak it, are you serious? _She_ leaked it.” 

“Yeah, and what was her name, Mark?” 

Mark said nothing, his lips pursing and jaw set since the name he had been given last night was definitely not the one that was in the news today. 

“Mark?” 

“...Peaches, she told me her name was Peaches.” Mark spilled, his petulant mood coming through.

“You’re a fucking idiot.” 

“ _I know_ , you don’t have to tell me again, trust me, _I know_.”

“Well, since you wouldn’t pick up your fucking mobile, I had to phone your parents which is embarrassing for both of us, but I did have a reason - we’re pushing for a press conference, so you better be in Houston next Monday, and you better be in the building at half nine, otherwise, I’ll fucking kill you, do you understand?” 

Mark could hear more phones ringing around Annie on the other end and he didn’t even want to imagine what sort of fires she was trying to put out because of him. She was probably still dealing with the Gino mess when this came about… part of him wanted to ask how and when she found out what he did, but the rest of him told him not to poke the bear - especially after a death threat. 

“Mark? Swear on your own grave you’ll be there on Monday-” 

“I swear, I promise, I pinky swear, scouts honour, whatever you want, I’ll be there on Monday, I swear to God, okay?” 

“Great, I’m going now - to fix _your_ mistakes-” 

“Wait, don’t go - Annie? You still there - I have a question-” 

“What? You have three seconds before I hang up.” 

“Can I bring a plus one?” 

“Dammit Mark, are you _shitting me_? Are you actually asking me if you can bring a _fuckbuddy_ to the press conference that’s saving you from being wiped across the internet like shit on a shoe for a one night stand? Are you serious? Holy _shit_ I’m hanging up-”

“ _No_ , Jesus, Annie, no-” Mark was shouting into a dead line, the tone stretched out as Mark growled at it and hung up himself, firing the phone into the grass as he felt his pockets for his mobile to reply to her in a format she couldn’t hang up on. His search turned up nothing and in a flash of panic, he marched inside on a hunt while hoping and pleading with the universe not to have let him be so stupid as to leave it in that girl’s apartment. Thankfully, it was flashing and buzzing on the kitchen counter, with a record of fifty three missed calls (thirty seven from Annie), a mass of voice mails, a mountain (one hundred and eighteen) text messages and the stable thirteen e-mails that haven’t changed in a month since he forgot his log in. 

He flopped down into a kitchen chair, glad to find his parents had moved from the kitchen and he didn’t have to endure any disappointed or awkward glances as he fought to clear his phone. Aside from Annie, Mark had missed calls from all five of his crewmates, Venkat, Mitch, a few unknown numbers, and the NASA psychologist he really didn’t like. Mark then sat and deleted all his voicemail - all of which was Annie telling him to pick up his ‘fucking goddamn phone’ and threatening to phone his parent’s if he didn’t. He supposed, in a way, that was Annie proving her metal - she comes through on her threats. Switching apps to make a note to be back in Houston for half 9 on Monday was unrelated to the Annie threat, or so he told himself. His texts were a bit more difficult to clear, although, again, a large bunch were from Annie, but he was still left with another seventy odd from other people. 

He had quite a few from the crew, despite the phone calls he already cleared. Martinez and Johanssen were both double texters, or, more accurately, octo-texters, and replying to them both with a single line of ‘yeah, i’m a fucking idiot’, was enough to set both of them off again while he tried to clear the rest of his backlog. It took him more than forty minutes to get rid off all the messages, going between dead threads and live threads with Martinez and Johanssen, who, for living in two different countries, had very similar ideas on how to ridicule Mark.

Ricky Martin-ez: if you catch something off her, i reserve the right to laugh for three years.

Ricky Martin-ez: nonstop.

Mark rolled his eyes, determined not to reply to that and add more fuel to the bonfire. Exiting the thread, he went to scroll, making sure he had caught all the new messages, when his thumb hesitated over one he missed.

Mindy: Heard about Gino’s. What assholes. I hope the rest of your trip home is going better.

The last thing Mark had expected to feel was guilt when he read the message, but it wrenched tightly around him. He didn’t understand the source, or why he felt like he should be apologising for letting Mindy down, but he didn’t feel like replying to a sympathy text when he was in so much trouble. He didn’t understand, either, why he felt more regret when faced with the idea of Mindy finding out - if she didn’t know already - than he did the rest of the world. Maybe it was because of how much debt he owed her, he didn’t want her thinking he was frivolous, or flighty, or … a lech and unsteady. He ground his teeth and backed out of the text thread, clearing new ones from Rick and Beth before messaging Annie. 

Me: i was asking so i could bring a friend to the conference ‘cause i promised one i’d take them.

Annie-Banannie: Are you sleeping with them?

Me: no!

Annie-Banannie: Are you going to sleep with them between now and Monday morning?

Me: they’re not even in the same state as me!

Annie-Banannie: That wasn’t an answer.

Annie-Banannie: Yes, you can bring them, but they stay at the side with the rest of us.

Me deal. love you, annie.

Annie-Banannie: Annie*.

Me: Annie Montrose, Queen of Media 

Mark got nothing back after that and he assumed his capital letters were taken as a sideways apology for giving her so much grief. Still, now he had a date for the most embarrassing press conference he will ever have to sit through and now he had to get beyond this negative bind he felt at the thought of talking to Mindy, and let her know he came through on the press conference promise.

Mindy: Heard about Gino’s. What assholes. I hope the rest of your trip home is going better.

Mark’s eyes ran over the message another few times, wondering how he should start his reply. He typed out several thank you’s in different tones, varying expressions, humility, charmed, aloof, different structures, beginning with jokes and then deleting them. 

“Get a grip, Mark, get a fucking grip.” 

Me: yeah, it was shit, thanks for the sympathy though but i probably don’t deserve it now. you’ve probably seen the news and if you haven’t, guess what - i’m on it again!! I did something very (fucking(haha ( :C))) stupid, but Annie has set up a press conference to save me - i think she’s gonna make me apologise or something… anyways. I promised you a press conference and there’s one on monday. I know you’ll be back in houston by then so, first mate, wanna come?

Mark pressed send before he could over analyse it any more. A hand went to his forehead to rub away at the stress gathering between his brows before shoving his phone into his back pocket and making his way back outside. Back to digging out flower beds, the work still wasn’t distracting him or even taking any sort of precedence in his mind since he found himself checking his phone and upping the volume for alerts, checking it again before leaving it out of his pocket and on the grass in front of him. It was now that Mindy’s usually quick reply times were playing on his mind. Mark wasn’t ever one for worrying over why people weren’t texting him back, but with this inexplicable draw of guilt, the need to be back in her good graces (despite not even knowing if he was out them), and a want to have her at his press conference, he couldn’t help himself but check and recheck his signal, his battery, his volume and his inbox. Following that, he even checked the time difference even though he knew it was only two hours, but just in case it has secretly changed he wanted to make sure the reason she wasn’t texting him back was not because it was three in the morning. But no, Washington state had not moved and was still only two hours behind Chicago. 

He worked on for another hour, taming hedges and tending to saplings before his furry companion made a second appearance. It waited, perched on the corner of the fence, just watching Mark try and ward it off with his arms up, sometimes brandishing watering cans or small trowels. He tried scaring it by moving closer to it calmly before whipping round to shout at it, but still, it barely flinched. Mark was already unenamoured with this cat, but he decided to ask for some advice from the only person he knew with a cat. He told himself he wasn’t sending Mindy another message in the reinvigorated hope of a reply, but because he really did need advice on how to get rid of, or at least deter a cat. 

Me: i have some cat questions too, one keeps shitting in my plants. 

Clouds covered the sun as it set, calling Mark inside from the spitting rain. He had hoped that by now, the local and national news nightly roundup would’ve been on and finished which, as well as his furry friend leaving his post, made going back inside a little easier. Shedding his sneakers at the door, he left them on the mat to loose their grass and mud as he padded through to the living room, flopping on the couch beside his mom. 

“News finished?” He asked, a caution in his tone. 

“Yes, you’ll be glad you missed it.” His mom muttered, dropping more guilt on him than he was needing. 

“I’m sor-” 

“Don’t apologise, Mark, I know you’re lonely - all you do all day is fix this house and fix the garden, planting and digging - throwing dirt at cats,” She raised a brow as Mark gaped, glaring at the empty chair where his dad should’ve been. “It’s not healthy for you, _clearly_.” She motioned to the tv in the corner, referencing the circulating news they were thankfully not watching. 

“Well, what d’you want me to do, mom? I don’t have an apartment, I might still be employed but I don’t have a _job_ , they won’t give me my license back until i finish the ‘rehab’ schedule which is bullshit, the psychologist keeps calling me and he’s just....” Mark trailed off, not wanting to admit that the more the psychologist called him, the more Mark ignored it - despite it making him more anxious over what was so important for five calls a day. “My friends are scattered, I can’t drive, we get chased out of Gino’s, I make a bad choice and it’s everybody’s damn business, I have a press conference to deal with - there’s a cat _shitting_ in my _damn plants_ -” As Mark got more agitated, his mom rested a hand on his shoulder and squeezed. 

“I know, honey, I know, but it’s alright - doesn’t matter what happens now, you’re back and that’s the only, _only_ thing that matters.” Mark nodded at his mom’s reassurance, bit dipped his head with the weight of the stress and embarrassment and everything else that’s been sitting on his shoulders for too long. “Really, Mark, a one night stand isn’t the worst thing you could do - maybe it’s not in your character, but it’s not difficult to see why it happened… although I think you could do better.” 

“ _Mom_.”

“I’m _just saying_ , you’re not being disowned just yet.” Lifting a hand to flatten a few flicks of Mark’s unruly hair, he leaned a little into her hand, the sensation taking him fair back in time. “When’s your conference?”

“Monday.” 

“Next week?” 

“Yeah, this one coming, nine or half nine, I can’t remember, but if I’m not early, Annie’ll kill me, so, I’ll be there for half eight, probably.” 

“You want company?” Mark considered the offer, but it also brought his mind back to the lack of messages on his phone. Still, parents or not, he wondered what Annie would do to him if he brought them out in front of the media in the press conference about his one night stand. He shifted at the idea before he answered, knowing his mom would understand him declining.

“No, I think Annie would really, _seriously_ harm me if I asked her for any more spaces.” 

“More spaces? Someone else going already?” His mom’s interest piqued, he could hear it in her tone.

“Maybe, they haven’t got me back about it yet.” Or at least, not since he last checked his phone - which was ten seconds before he walked into the room and sat down. The silence and the look of interest across his mom’s face had him going on - he didn’t mind talking about it like this, his parent’s already knew about Mindy. Or at least, knew about her from hearing Mark mention her - and then seeing her in the clip from the Houston local his mom found on the internet. “Remember Mindy? Who saw me? I asked her if she wanted to go ‘cause, well, I still owe her I think.” 

His mom seemed satisfied with his answer, her hand still stroking at his hair. “She saw that the volcano was heating up, right?” His mom had been getting updates from NASA sent to her phone for years now and now couldn’t figure out how to turn them off. “She seems very clever… but she hasn’t messaged you back?” 

“She’s back home too, on a break, so don’t make that face.” His mom shrugged, denying she was making any sort of face when they both heard the front door being opened and his dad bustling in with what sounded like dinner. Despite being a simple Chinese takeaway, dinner itself was complicated. Only in the sense that his dad was trying to plan out Mark’s ‘next steps’ to give him something to aim for, after his mom told him Mark was frustrated with nothing to do. It then meant that for the first time in a long time, Mark had plans to go out tomorrow and do something he wanted to do. In fact, going to bed that night he felt able to leave the stress by the door and focus on something new. He had even decided to turn his phone off to get the empty inbox off his mind, and for the first three hours he lay in bed, it worked. He drifted quickly, and maybe if he hadn’t woke up sweating and panting with his heart racing, he might have even dreamt. 

He grasped his covers in his fists and heaved, his eyes wide, staring at the room around him, taking in the furniture he knew so well before a flat palm thudded against the wall to his right. His fingers scraped off the wall, reassuring himself it was brick, plaster and flaky paint in the corners - it was not HAB walls, it was _not_ HAB walls, _it was not HAB walls_. By the time his breathing was more even, he slammed down on his back, his hands rubbing at his face. He couldn’t lie there any longer with the thoughts of being on Mars still floating around his mind. Instead of wallowing in his nightmares, he got up and showered despite it being four in the morning. Having the water running over him in the familiar yellow light of thirty five year old bathroom was calming enough to steady his heart and clear his head. But, clear head or not he still couldn’t face sitting about his room, but with his plan to head into Chicago and see some of his old professors he supposed he could start it early. 

Penning a note in the kitchen explaining that he couldn’t sleep and he was headed into Chicago early, he signed it with his initial and wrote a small p.s about how he would do his best to not be on the news tonight. After wandering over a few streets, he called a taxi to take him closer to the campus. It was only a thirty minute ride, and at that time of the morning, the streets were dead enough for him to get about without being spotted. When he reached the outskirts of his campus, it was just before six and from here he could see one diner with the lights still on and a bored waitress behind the bar. 

Making his way through a door that rang when he pushed it, he nodded at the offer of coffee and requested a breakfast burrito and whatever sides they had going. He made his way to a booth in the back and turned his phone on with a small seed of hope.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i think i need to update the 'about' part of this fic... we're a bit far from "mark being in the building" now...


	18. Chapter 18

Monday morning was uneventful and she spent it milling about the house, getting ready and piecing herself together for the day while her mom did the same. By the time her mom had left Mindy, had bundled herself up on the couch with a small mug of coffee to think of her plans for the day. She had already been a little surprised at a lack of reply from Mark when she woke up, but she put it out her mind - he got chased out a restaurant, so he was probably just laying low. It was then that she stretched over to the coffee table in front of her for the tv remote, flicking through the channels to find the news. She didn’t quite understand at first, reading the circulating headline a few times before she was washed over by a sobering chill.

_Mark Watney Caught: Martian Hero Exposed In One Night Stand Scandal_

She didn’t want to feel hurt or let down and she definitely didn’t want to feel betrayed, but what she was was shocked. There was no reason for her to feel like this, she wasn’t enjoying the feeling of a lump on her throat or the immediate drop of her stomach that now felt empty but weighted. Yesterday she felt so sorry for Mark, his inability to live the life he fought to have, but today her sympathy was divided with a tinge of disappointment. She was annoyed at herself, too, for feeling like this. She would agree, wholeheartedly, that Mark deserved a break, that he deserved privacy and the general respect any regular person would have, yet, his actions had hurt her and she felt so stupid. She felt as if she had duped herself into thinking things were becoming a little clearer for her, and in some regard they were, but more so it only made her feel far worse.

The sickening headline told her more than she needed to know - more than she would ever want to know - and the blurry picture on the screens behind the reporters was not helping, she could only grit her teeth so hard. But, more than being told just why Mark had yet to respond to her text, she realised a few other things. The blatantness of it all was only acting as a mirror. Her initial shock and secondary flood of emotions were all to plain - too plain for even Mindy to distort. Firstly, and most apparent, it would be a lie to ignore her feelings for Mark any longer. Yes, he was still her friend and hopefully will continue to be, but what she had been denying or misconstruing as elevated feelings of friendship were not. Any time her stomach churned at a new text, or the night he spent asking her things about Mars - the coffee morning that had her late for work - had been interest, attraction and development; Venkat was right, her mom was right, Andy was right - anyone who had ever had a sneaking suspicion more might have been going on was right and she didn’t want to kid herself on anymore. She liked that survivor in him, the push to keep going, she liked how immediately close she felt to him after she met him, as if they were being reuinited after a long trip. She really _liked_ him, and she couldn’t let it rot unaccepted.

Secondly, she enjoyed it. Around him she was calm and sure. She was certain in her actions, she knew who she was around him. She wasn’t nervous or guarded and she certainly never worried about saying the wrong things, even when she did. She already knew he was still sensitive over Mars, she could tell he was lonely and looked for company, and she wanted to be it. She liked who she was around him, she enjoyed his company and how it calmed her. But, she couldn’t help but think that she wasn’t enough for him when this was on the news. Or, maybe, had they both still been in Houston, would it have been different? Would he even be on the news if they were still in Houston, or would they both be on the news? Would it be her in the blurry picture rather than this woman? 

Further, she could feel a twinge of anger. Thinking about him like this didn’t feel like breaching the privacy she had been working so hard to keep intact for him when previously it had. The way she denied telling anyone any specific details, even her mom, just in case they let something slip they shouldn’t had been unfair. Mindy had never lied to her mom and when she left for Houston she promised to be more open due to the distance, but when Mark came along she decided that the details he gave her deserved protection - but why should she be so careful with him when he’s as blunderous as this? And maybe it wasn’t always protection. If she was being brutally honest, there had been that blush of embarrassment when Mark came up in conversation and with hindsight, it was simply because she liked him and didn’t want to withstand the scrutiny. And that only stemmed from a warped sense of entitlement. She hoped that with being the only one to know all these details about him it would bring them closer. She didn’t think like that at the time, but it was clearer to her now - she spent all her time denying them when they were exactly what she was trying to build.

But what use was that now? The only thing this had certified for her was that Mark’s mind was elsewhere. She was right in assuming she was the only one feeling like this. The news crew continued to report that there had been ‘no comment from the Hero himself’, but why would Mark bother? He had a night of fun that turned into a mess, he won’t be wanting to stick his foot in it any further. Still, if it was out that Mark was unattached but lonely, Mindy didn’t doubt that this might be the first in a string of similar stories - so why should she be harbouring feelings that would never be reciprocated? 

She wondered, as her hand balled against Avocado’s coat, how she could have judged Mark’s moods and glances so wrongly. She had never been good at flirting, and usually had to rely on other people’s observations and comments before she could tell for herself. Yet, this time she discounted every one she heard - she had even let loose her anger on Venkat for doing exactly that. However, it might have been miniscule and bound in silence, but there had been the smallest part of her that hoped they had been right. Venkat’s evidence from the night out - the way all the crew said goodbye to her, and especially the way Rick worked to embarrass Mark in front of her - it was hard to dispute. But as Venkat had said, Mark ‘can only hang on to your every word for so long’... maybe she had just ran out of time. 

Her eyes glazed over and she stopped paying attention to the news in front of her as she wondered where it left her. Ultimately, she felt she couldn’t just let go of her feelings for Mark, even if she wanted to. She also still wanted to be his friend - just because he wasn’t on the same page as she was didn’t mean she had to stop talking to him, that was ridiculous. But, above all, she couldn’t find it in her to _blame_ him for what he had done. He was lonely, she _knew_ that, she could tell it from the way he acted around groups of people, touching them and standing close to them, slapping hands on shoulders and giving out hugs whenever they said goodbye. So, he had made a bad choice and while it felt like she had been cast aside from a contest she hadn’t realised she put herself in, she knew he didn’t deserve it to be plastered on the news like this. Part of her wanted to reach out to him, say she was sorry, again, for the media acting like predators, but the part of her that felt wounded and forgotten couldn’t bring herself to do it. In fact, when her phone buzzed and his name and accompanying emoji flashed up on the front of her phone, she couldn’t bring herself to read it, never mind reply. 

She refused to mope, telling herself that she needed to go out and away from news outlets. Picking herself up off the couch, she routed for the keys to her old car and drove until she hit the coast. She might have only been there yesterday with her mom, but the walk along to beach was soothing and required her to concentrate when she hit the rocks. The sky had clouded over considerably but the threat of rain was hollow, letting her power on over the rocks and down a forest trail before she came out at a point, finding a boulder to sit on and watch the greying sea. She wrapped her jacket tighter around her and brought her phone out her pocket. Her mom had text her from work, making sure she was okay but made no reference to the news. 

For the rest of the day she ignored the small number one above her inbox, only answering calls and texts from her mom. Sitting on a rock for half an hour above an isolated shoreline before her trek back to her car did help settle her. Her breathing was even, resting on the same beat as the draw of the sea against the beach. When she got home, her mom was in soon after and the wordless apology she gave Mindy from across the room had Mindy pursing her lips. She wasn’t going to cry, that was pointless, but she did accept the warm hug from her mom. 

“I think he’ll regret it more than you know, Mindy.” Her mom mused, later that night, from behind her where she played with her hair - something she did when Mindy was upset as a child, but it's effects never diluted over the years. Her mom’s voice was low and soothing as her gentle fingers wrapped her hair into a short plait. “If you were lonely,” She began slowly, treading carefully so as not to rile Mindy. “Really, desperately lonely, with your friends scattered, no work to do and therefore no stable faces to see except your own parents - when the opportunity arises to not be so lonely for just a few hours, wouldn't you take it?” 

Mindy said nothing, just swallowed against the thought. How many times had she told herself today that she knew Mark had been lonely, yet she still balked at what he had done. When her mom’s hand rested at her shoulder, a strong thumb rubbing against her shoulder blade, Mindy nodded. She was right, after all.

“You know better than anyone on this planet how alone he is, so don't you go putting space between you two just because he didn’t want to be so lonely for a little while.” Her mom squeezed her shoulder, letting her know she was finished lecturing and playing with her hair. Still, Mindy wasn’t sure what to say and slid back up to the couch from the floor. 

“He text me earlier, I haven’t read it.” She admitted as she brought her knees up to her chest in the corner of the couch. 

“Oh, Mindy, answer the text - what did I just say? He’s lonely, you’re his _friend_ , aren’t you? Where’s your phone?” Her mom started looking about herself, looking for Mindy’s cell, and when Mindy produced it from her pocket, she shook her head. “What does it say?” 

Mindy flicked her eyes to her mom. “I don’t want to read it, yet.” 

“Stop it, just read the text-” Her mom pointed at her phone, insisting on it and leaving Mindy no choice as she unlocked her phone and clicked to her inbox. Her eyes scanned the message and found it immediately clear that her mom was right, once again. Mindy deflated under her guilt for not answering before, something her mom noticed and kindly left her to sort a reply while her mom cleaned up the kitchen.

[08:34:12]: yeah, it was shit, thanks for the sympathy though but i probably don’t  
deserve it now. you’ve probably seen the news and if you haven’t, guess what -  
i’m on it again!! I did something very (fucking(haha ( :C))) stupid, but Annie  
has set up a press conference to save me - i think she’s gonna make me  
apologise or something… anyways. I promised you a press conference and there’s  
one on monday. I know you’ll be back in houston by then so, first mate,  
wanna come?

[16:12:55]: i have some cat questions too, one keeps shitting in my plants.

She didn’t know where to start with the message, but she knew that being made to apologise for what had happened wasn’t fair. He didn’t deserve for that to be viciously spread across the internet, to be spinning on the news all day. He deserved to have his privacy intact - it wasn’t him that leaked it, it came from _her_. But, regardless of that, there was an invite to be accepted and while it had been promised to her before, she felt uneasy about it now that it had a subject line attached to it. Still, after all this, after what her mom told her and what she could pick up herself, she couldn’t abandon him by declining - unrequited feelings or not. 

[22:48:03] Sorry about the news, Gino’s was bad enough. Yeah, I’ll come to the conference - I lost a bet, right? And what did I tell you before? Cats do as they please.

Her message was coated in a more upbeat jacket than she felt she was wearing. She knew it wouldn’t be worth getting angry over or letting the way she was feeling about him, or about being taken to a press conference to bury the one night stand that was wounding her, get in the way of being a friend. It wouldn’t be fair on either of them. Especially since there wasn’t anything Mark could really do now; he had made his choice. While Mindy was already working on accepting that. 

With enough stress for one day and enough texting for one night, she turned her phone off in the hope that the impossibility of receiving any replies would give her the sleep she needed. It was a logical plan and as she worked her way towards bed, following her nightly routine, not having to check her phone did relieve some of the weight from her shoulders, but not much. She had been expecting to wake in the light of the morning and maybe even have a few seconds of quiet where she wasn’t reminded about what happened today, but as Monday night morphed into Tuesday, she only got a further two hours before she was wide awake and stressed again. 

She called it Mars Time in her head, but even that was a struggle. Fuck Mars Time, she thought. The difference between a day and a sol was 40 minutes, so, really, while it might have made sense while Mark was on Mars to call her awkward shifts ‘Mars Time’, it made no sense now. It was just inconvenient, annoying, frustrating and she was really, really tired despite being so awake. But, that’s all it was, just her sleeping pattern confused from old but awkward work shifts - it had nothing to do with the times on other planets and their translation to Earth.  
Now, stepping out of the shower at four in the morning, she wore a scowl until Avocado wrapped around her leg on her way to the kitchen. She knew her mom would be annoyed if she found out about her sneaking through the house at this time, but she couldn’t stay in her room. The darkness felt like a cage and she needed to be doing something, even if that something was just making tea and toast.

A swell of frustration got the better of her when all she could scavenge was out of date bread and an empty box where the bags of green tea were supposed to be. Her fists balled against the counter for a second, her muscles in her arms clenched before she relaxed, trying not to let the build of stress get the better of her. Watering her mom’s seeds, she decided to go out in search of food and wrote on the back of an old letter that she was going to Stackers, the local twenty-four hour diner, and that if her mom wanted anything when she woke to text her. 

She let her car roll out the driveway before she revved the engine on, trying not to wake her mom at half four on a Tuesday morning. At the first set of lights, she rested her head against the wheel, just for few moments. 

“ _Stop it_.” She ordered herself, trying to get rid of the edges of stress that clung to her shoulders. She needed to pull herself together after working through all the individual parts of her problem. Making her way to the diner, she was glad the only two staff on were people she didn’t recognise. Her town might not be that small, but people knew people, and Mindy didn’t want to see anyone right now. 

Mindy settled into a booth in the empty diner with a mug of coffee she didn’t request and hot toast to pick at. She tutted at herself as she routed through the bag she brought, realising that beyond her purse and her phone, she had nothing else to keep her occupied or distracted enough for the next few hours. In starting her phone, she wondered if Mark had replied to her latest text yet and whether or not she would find the confidence to read it if he had. When she was finished creaming and sweetening her coffee, her eyes glanced to her phone and the lurch in her chest at the flashing light for a notification was more violent than she was really expecting. She pushed the home button once, bringing up the front screen to see a message alert. She unlocked her phone and carefully clicked into her inbox, not sure if she was hoping it was from Mark or not. Her jaw set when she read his name, the accompanying emoji of the small breaching plant acted as a reminder of who he really was - not who the media showed him as. With the green fingered botanist in mind, she clicked on the message.

[22:48:03] Sorry about the news, Gino’s was bad enough. Yeah, I’ll come  
to the conference - I lost a bet, right? And what did I tell you before?  
Cats do as they please.

[05:02:11] yeah, but, don’t come if you don’t want to.  
press conferences can be boring and this one is just gonna be embarrassing.  


[05:02:32] is there really nothing to do about this cat? he’s ruining my plants and  
they can’t fight this avocado.

 

The timing of the messages confused her, they were either only picked up now because she turned her phone on, or he really did just send them as she turned on her phone. Either way, she felt capable to reply and started to type away. 

[05:06:18] Well, even i know there’s anti-cat plants you can buy. But  
I don’t know how effective they are - I’ve never grown anything before.  
But I want to go, it’ll be interesting. 

She left it at that. She didn’t want to expand on a reason for going to the press conference, especially since she couldn’t make up her mind on if she actually wanted to go or not. He asked her and at the minute, that was her only reason. It was a compelling reason, and enough of one to have Mindy certain she would be there, but she wouldn’t really be thrilled about it. Her phone was slid to the side in an attempt to calm her interest in whether Mark was awake at this time or not. She supposed it might be more likely since he was two hours ahead of her, and seven is a more sensible time than five. Still, there wasn’t very much to do at five in the morning - internet at her fingertips or not - and the longer time spun between her message and a lack of reply, the more she was convinced of the growing space between her and Mark… maybe she didn’t qualify for instant text backs any more. Maybe she never did and it was just luck that he was always free and able to reply to her when she had text him before. Or maybe she was just needlessly panicking.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> uh okay. so i have lots of things to tell you;  
> 1) i can't remember when i last posted so sorry if it's been a while  
> 2) i think i'm gonna change the layout of the texty bits bc i was rereading earlier parts and some times it difficult to know which one is which from mindys perspective bc (idk why i did this) but all her texts begin with the time sent/received and not the name of who sent it?? which was so stupid?? but im in too deep now to change it so i'll just change where the paragraph breaks instead.  
> 3) i was gonna tell you guys something else but i've forgot what it was jfc  
> 4) oh!! i remember - they're finally on the same ffffffucking day now so you guys don't have to pay attention to that. it's tuesday. NO PROBLEM. it's tuesday for everyone. except its 7am for mark and 5am for mindy bc america is so fat time difference is a thing.  
> 5) enjoy, friends. 
> 
> p.s tho the pain in the arse cat has a name, come to my tumblr (@greglet) and send me your guesses and if anyone gets it right i'll... commend u. it might be revealed soonish idk but i think it's cute. my friends think i need a life. they're right.


	19. Chapter 19

The minute Mark’s phone buzzed, his lithe fingers grabbed at it and spun it the right way up in his hand. Unfortunately, since he had been away so long, his phone now qualified as ‘ancient’ and with the sudden notification, the decrepit machine froze up. He had been getting used to the routine of unclicking his phone, removing the battery, giving it a wave and clicking it all back into place again, so much so that he had managed to do it all one handedly while he paid attention to the food in front of him. His expression might have been ‘absent minded’, but he was frustrated with his phone acting up like this, especially knowing that the reply must have just come through. That told him Mindy was awake at five in the morning and, better still, talking to him. He didn’t want to assume the worst, but when she had replied to his last text to suggest that the only reason she would go to the press conference was because she lost a bet, he felt like he was forcing her into something she didn’t want. He then concluded that if she wasn’t happy, neither was he. 

When his phone finished starting up, his fingers raced across to his inbox, drawing a dirty look to the loading wheel in the centre of his screen.

Mindy: Well, even I know there’s anti-cat plants you can buy. But  
I don’t know how effective they are - I’ve never grown  
anything before. But I want to go, it’ll be interesting.  


Interesting. That didn’t sound positive or enthused. Forget the plants, he needed to make sure she was going because she really did want to - not just because he was asking her to. After all, it was an invite and she could say no to an invite - she _had_ said no to an invite from him before, although it was via Venkat and a very long while ago. But it stemmed from the same place - he owed her too much and small acts like these were part of the way he was trying to make it up to her. 

Me: really, only go if you want to. i won’t hold it  
against you if you don’t want to go.  


Mindy: No, I want to. Don’t  
make me beg for a ticket now.

Me: okay, okay. it’s yours. but if  
you change your mind, that’s okay too.

Mindy: I won’t change my mind, I’ll  
be in the building anyway.

He supposed that was true, yet, despite being in the building, he knew that Annie was ticketing the event so only the ‘right’ type of press could get in - whatever that meant. Annie was so ruthless with her tickets that she had warned him on a separate occasion not to bring any more extras, but when Mark offered to tell her who his extra was, she didn't have the time to be interested. Not that it mattered much since she already knew Mindy and maybe Annie would be glad to see Mindy there - at least Mark wasn’t bringing a wild card. 

Me: alright. so why are you up at this time? 

Mindy: Couldn’t sleep or find any food at  
home so I’m in a diner picking at toast.

Mark glanced to his own food and raised a brow to himself. For being so far apart, both during his Ares time and now he was back, he and Mindy were so often on the same page. 

Mindy: What about you? Seven is still  
early.

Me: would you believe me if i gave the exact same  
excuse?  
Me: 00631.jpg (sent)  
Me: see, breakfast food in a diner, 7am.  
Me: i’d send you a picture of the bags  
under my eyes to prove my lack of sleep  
but i know thats not a good view

Mindy: Does this make us part of the breakfast  
club? Also, that’s so much milk in  
that coffee.

Me: i’m gonna say no, cause I don't  
think we'd fit as any of the characters.  
we’ll make our own club instead.  
and don’t shame my coffee. i missed  
milk, okay? 

Mindy: I always liked Alllison.  
Mindy: 00632.jpg (open file)  
Mindy: This toast is cold now.

Mark chuckled a little at her sad description of her toast but between trying to eat the piles of food around him and answer texts, it wasn’t easy and his milky coffee was heading the same way Mindy’s toast was. 

Me: can i call you? it’d be easier

Mindy: Call me? 

Hitting the phone up button, he nestled his cell between his shoulder and ear and carried on with his breakfast, glad for the ring to cut off and a groggy Mindy on the other end. The mere sound of her voice had a tweak of a smile at his lips and raise of his mood; he hadn’t realised he missed it until he heard it. 

“You sound way too tired, Mindy.” 

“Thanks. You sound way too happy for this time of the morning.” Mindy replied, obviously stifling a yawn. 

Mark chuckled, supposing that compared to her timezone he might be little bit more ready to greet the day. “Well, I managed to get the day to myself - or at least it will be until I get caught.” 

“Are you wearing that hat again?” Mindy asked, unable to keep the playful accusation out her voice. 

“No, not this time, I thought you might be right about it drawing more attention than deflecting - plus my dad was happy to have it back.” Mindy laughed on the other side and while they were physically apart, it felt like the last early morning meet up they had - just as comfortable. “Also, ‘cause I thought if I showed up at my old college - which is where I’m going - they might throw me out with such a shit hat.” Mindy laughed again and Mark felt something like the beginning of an addiction. 

“So you’re going to see old professors?”

“Yeah, I’ve been e-mailing a few - and a couple I got e-mails from on Mars - so I thought it was about time I seen them in person since I can.” Mark explained, physically shrugging at the empty bench across from him as if she was there. “But, I’m pretty sure they’re gonna tell me off for, uh, what I did - they always knew I was a little bit reckless.” 

“What you did? Being on Mars?”

“No, no, I don’t think they’ll give me into trouble for getting myself stuck on Mars when I probably rocketed their intake - pun intended.” He laughed at himself, picturing Mindy rolling her eyes at his terrible joke. “No, I think they’ll give me a talking to for Sunday night, I mean I probably deserve it.” 

His laughter was still tailing off, but the quick silence on the other end gave him an edge he wasn’t expecting. It was a hesitation and while it didn’t last for long, it hit Mark hard. He knew he had fucked up on Sunday night - how could he not? The news wouldn’t stop circulating it, the picture was on every website across the globe in several different languages, in every newspaper and magazine and of course, sent to him a few different times over by his loving crew mates. Yet, as he thought about it, Mindy had said nothing about what had happened so far, only that she had seen it and while she was ‘sorry’ about it, that could’ve meant anything now - sorry for seeing it, sorry for it happening, sorry he got caught or maybe not sorry at all. Although, anything but sincere kindness didn’t seem to be in Mindy’s personality, even Mark knew that. 

“Min-?” He started, trying to fill the expanding silence.

“No, I don’t think they would, you don’t deserve it if they do.” 

“You don’t think I deserve it?” He was a little surprised. Everyone he had spoken to since had either laughed at him or told him the blame was his to take - it was his action, his choice, he should deal with the consequences. Finding someone on his side was more than reassuring and refreshing but it also had him dipping his eyes to the table, internalising the small burst of comfort. 

“Of course not, how was it your fault it was… leaked, or whatever? They’re acting like you did something wrong, but you are an adult, you can make your own choices and you just got back to Earth after a very isolating journey - none of this was a _fault_ , Mark.” 

A thought briefly touched his mind, making him wonder how less lonely he would’ve been on Mars if he could have heard her voice replying to him when he sent out those morse code rocks, or if he could’ve _spoke_ to her directly. Hearing her voice of reason, regardless of how factly it sounded and maybe a little rehearsed, had him warmer than the coffee ever did. He had thought the same, if he was being honest with himself, and found it unfair that the media were treating him like a criminal when they were viciously supporting him through his Martian Survival Camp. Beyond that, it made him wonder why he was being dragged through the media over spikes when his partner in crime was barely mentioned - despite the infamous picture coming from _her_ phone. 

Mark sighed, knowing he was only fighting a battle he had already lost. The media weren’t _angry_ over it, it was just a little bit of drama over the golden boy astronaut they risked nothing to talk about while NASA and Mindy raced to save him. 

“Still sucks though, it might not have been my fault but it definitely feels like I fucked up.”

“Yeah, it does - suck, I mean.” Mindy replied diplomatically, still not really putting in a personal opinion on the matter, which alluded to Mark there was something she wasn’t wanting to say. He was shrewd enough, however, to know what not to poke and decided to move the conversation to something a little less rocky.

“How’s your break? Your mom happy to see you? Is she sneezing over Avocado yet?” 

“Not yet, but she’s about to run out of her antihistamines, so she’ll be in tears by the time we leave, but otherwise, it’s going okay.” 

“Just okay?” Mark prodded before going back to the cooling food in front of him. 

“Yeah, well, it’s been fine, but my mom organised a homecoming party for Friday night and I spent most of talking about work than anything else - not that that’s a complaint, but it wasn’t fun… my mom did it because she knew her neighbours wanted to know stuff and she thought getting it over with at the start would get them out our hair, but they keep texting her asking to meet up again.” Mindy paused and Mark couldn’t help but cut in. 

“Work, huh? Was that ‘work’ _me_ by any chance?” Mindy’s reluctant agreement had him sighing an apology. It hadn’t crossed his mind before that people he knew might be getting grilled just as much as he was, if not more. “So, what were you saying about me? Total idiot who won’t leave me alone?” Mark was relieved to hear the soft scoff at the other end of the call. 

“No, more like… well, I actually didn’t do a lot of talking, they were really answering their own questions, like, ‘Is he nice? I bet he’s really nice, he always seems nice in his interviews-’ and then they’d ask something else but answer it before I even opened my mouth and that went on for about three hours.” 

“Three hours?” Mark felt a shade of guilt, one a lot more encompassing than any he held for his Sunday night disaster. “That’s a long time, sorry about that.” 

“Don’t apologise, it’s not your fault people are really nosy, and it was spread out over a six hour party, so it wasn’t that bad.” Mindy conceded, but Mark still felt responsible, he didn’t want his friends put out at his expense, especially not Mindy when he already owes her so much. At a mumble of a voice he didn’t recognise on Mindy’s end, he shuffled in his seat.

“You getting the bill?” 

“No, she just brought me more coffee.” 

“No milk though, right?” Mark asked, the smile coming through in his voice. 

“Not as much as you, I don’t need the full cow.” Mindy shot back, her own smile in her voice.

“Yeah, yeah, you go live on Mars with nothing but water and potatoes for two years and see how you feel about milk.” His playful shot had her laughing and apologising before she gasped his name, having him lean forward, asking what happened.

“No, nothing happened, I just had something to tell you- when I was driving over, I put on the radio and apparently there’s a game next week with the Mariners against the Cubs.” 

“No way, where?” 

“Chicago, but we’re gonna be in Houston - unless you want Annie to hunt you down - ‘cause it’s on Monday.” 

“You’re shitting me.” Mark’s left hand ran down his face in complete disappointment. He was only planning to be in Houston for as long as the press conference and then come back home but there was no way he’d manage to make it unless he got a flight, and he couldn’t go without Mindy. “Well, we gotta go out in Houston and watch it, then.” 

“It’s not the playoffs though, Mark-” 

“Well, okay, the bet doesn’t rest on these games, but come on, we’ll go out after the press conference.” Mindy laughed at his enthusiasm, but he only broke a smile - he was completely serious in his offer. 

“I have to _work_ and I don’t think Venkat will let me off for a baseball game - no matter who is asking.” Mark rolled his eyes at her warning, but she was right, he couldn’t just steal her away from work whenever he wanted. “Besides, it starts at six and I might not get away-”

“Not get away for six? Mindy, you’re not working the night shift on Monday, you can get away for six _easy_ , c’mon, come with me and see us destroy the Mariners.” His voice dipped at the end, temptation wavering down the phone as he whispered quiet ‘come on’s to her. 

“Alright, alright, but if I get into trouble, you’re taking the hit.” Mark’s left fist balled in visible celebration when Mindy agreed, but his wide grin hit an empty bench across from him. Her acceptance felt like he had been forgiven, or at least he felt better than he had done when he had brought up the Sunday night incident. They remained on the phone for another twenty minutes until Mindy’s phone relayed her text tone to notify her of a message from her mom asking if she was still out (“What the _hell_ was that?” “My text tone.” “...Your text tone is Doc from Back to the Future saying ‘Great Scott’?”). When they hung up and Mark left his diner, the call gave him enough to think about for his journey to the university. For the past day he hadn’t felt guilty for his actions, only for being caught, but when Mindy was decidedly on his side over the small disaster, that was when he found true guilt. He couldn’t find a reason to justify the feeling; being too in debt to her didn’t make sense for being guilty over a one night stand that wasn’t really related to Mindy, neither did his theory of disappointing her. It wasn’t as if sleeping with someone else pushed him further into the red with Mindy - he wasn’t _seeing_ Mindy, it wasn’t _cheating_ , although, maybe that was what the wrench in his chest was when he brought it up. And maybe it wasn’t _guilt_ exactly, but the admission of guilt that had him confused. He wasn’t sure why he confessed to her like a sinner to a priest, but he had. He had come clean to her twice now - in a text and over the phone, and he was quite sure that if he saw her soon enough, he’d apologise in person, too. 

As he crossed the road into the train station, he wondered if it was just because of how close they’d become in such a short space of time. It was a strange relationship, only in the sense that they knew each other for longer than they were really both aware. Mindy might have known Mark longer than he did her, but after being introduced to her it felt more like a reunion… an incredible but strange reunion where he wasn’t sure who she really was, but knew he owed her more than he could ever articulate. But reunion with a stranger or not, that still didn’t explain why he felt to compelled to spill his secrets - all of them, even when she didn’t ask. In a time where he was being told to hide and keep quiet, he seemed to refuse to close off to Mindy. But, what did Annie tell him before he left Houston? ‘Don’t tell anyone where you’re going, Mark, don’t tell _anyone_ ever, do you understand? Mark, are you listening?’ - and what did he do? Shared his location with Mindy as he drove up to his house. 

And still, his mind returned again and again to the debt he owed her. He wasn’t sure how much debt saving a life really equates to, and since he couldn’t realistically go around to every human being who so much as sent a prayer for him to thank them personally, he would do his best for Mindy instead. He could text her every day until she blocked him to thank her for everything she did for him, or he could take her to his press conferences and baseball games and dinners just to make sure he knew how much he appreciated her. It was easier, in a way, to think of what he could do for Mindy rather than the six billion other people who looked up and out for him. That scared him. All that money, effort, love and hope that brought him home was so terrifyingly huge that only trying to shower one person with all the thanks he could muster was somewhat more feasible. Of course, any time he was handed a microphone he thanked everyone who could hear him, but would people believe his sincerity? In an age where celebrities are followed only to catch them slipping in their carefully kind persona, he couldn’t assume that everyone would take his thanks as genuine - especially after the shitstorm they had caused around him only yesterday. And he knew only too well how frustrating it was not to feel listened to when trying to bring gravity to gratitude and have it brushed off.

After a cab, he kept his head down as he slipped through hallways and double doors on his way to the lecture theatre near the back of campus. Mark had spent a good portion of his time at university in the back building since it housed engineering and the greenhouses. It was a strange mix and neither staff enjoyed having the other in their space, but it worked for Mark. When he quietly made it to the back of the lecture hall, he spied the greying professor he was after at the front, delivering notes on the finer points of the module on horticulture - something Mark had found fascinating and, ultimately, useful. He quietly made his way to an aisle seat at the back, not disturbing anyone, and listened to the last fifteen minutes of the lecture. It was still captivating and even after all this time, effort and experience he had acquired, he still enjoyed hearing the theory of plant cultivation and pinnacle management. It was scintillating enough to keep his mind off everything that was troubling him. 

While students packed their things and filtered out the doors, Mark remained seated until the main crowds were off the stairs that drew down to the lectern. He took one look over his shoulder to see the door closing against the last student before his footsteps had his old professor looking up. 

“Mark _fucking_ Watney, you lucky bastard-” Professor Joseph Fraser broke into a wide grin, his arms raised for a hug Mark was all too ready for. “God, am I glad to see you.” Two thundering claps against Mark’s shoulder had them separating from the hug as Joseph’s eyes appraised him. “You’re lookin’ a lot better than you did getting pulled out of that shuttle.” 

“Should’a’ seen me getting in the Hermes - turns out potatoes aren’t all that nutritious.” Mark said with sarcastic insight that had them both laughing. “I was going to e-mail you, let you know I was coming, but it was a snap decision this morning and then I kinda forgot to let you know, but all these years later and your nine o’clock lecture still hasn’t been moved, huh?” 

“Tell me about it, I’m still tryin’ for that Monday afternoon slot, but apparently ‘application of engineering’ is just too damn important.” Joseph jabbed. 

“Yeah, I might have to agree with that.” Mark laughed again, glad for the warm welcome. 

“Come on, I might not get the lecture slot I wanted, but I did get that coffee machine-” 

“You still growin’ your own beans?” Mark asked, following on beside his professor.

“You think I’d buy instant? How much oxygen did you lose up there, son?” Mark mirrored the smirk from Joseph and raised his brows. 

“Some might argue too much.” Mark admitted, and despite the subject topic, he was feeling relaxed. Their conversation through the corridors and back to the manicured gardens of the botany and horticulture departments was warm and upbeat, and when they reached the greenhouses there were freshly picked coffee beans sitting in a mason jar beside the machine. Once they had finished brewing and brought hot mugs back to Joseph’s incredibly green office, the conversation turned to the elephant in the room.

“Mark, how the hell did you manage it?” Joseph shook his head, thinking of all the struggles. “I mean, all of it, for god’s sake, you _lived_ on Mars - on fucking _potatoes_... Mark, I don’t know how you did it - don’t get me wrong, we were all praying for you, you brought botany and engineering together - we share a rec room now - but, Jesus, I just… I’m so glad you’re here.” Mark could see Joseph struggling between trying to word how he felt while also trying to stay away from triggering words like ‘alone’, ‘self’, ‘solo’ and ‘clutches-of-death’. Mark smirked into his mug for a moment before he answered. 

“I got lucky.” Mark shrugged and Joseph scoffed. 

“Yeah, you really did.”

“But, really, I don’t know how I did it.” Logically, he knew he managed it by his methods. One problem at a time, carefully and pragmatically… but, emotionally, he struggled. “I guess, because I just had to, it wasn’t as if if I chose not to be useful one day it’d all go away, I was up there and I needed to get off.” 

“When did they see you?”

“Sol 34 or something, it was pretty early on but it was a while after that before we got communication up and I was getting e-mails - which, by the way, were very informative; my favourite was the colonisation one.” Joseph laughed, nodding his head in recognition.

“Yeah, I thought you’d like that one, guess it just means you’ll be in the history books for it, now.” 

“Thanks to potatoes.” Mark added.

“Hey, what did we tell you? Tubers forever, right?” 

“Tubers forever.” Mark smiled, still hugging his coffee as he remembered all his lectures on the cultivation and true farming methods of the most versatile crops. At the time, although important, it never felt like it was life or death knowledge, but he definitely had that appreciation for it now. “And satellites forever, too, otherwise I would still be up there, probably.” 

Joseph pursed his lips to a tight smile, not wanting either of them to dwell on that. “But, you’re back and slapped across every news outlet in the world - we always knew you were a bit of a cocky bastard, but, uh, not like this.” Joseph laughed at his own insinuation while Mark rolled his eyes.

“Here we go,” Mark muttered, “Y’know, I told my friend this morning that you’d try and rip me a new one for fucking up like this and she said ‘no, Mark, he won’t do that ‘cause you don’t deserve it’.” 

“Maybe you don’t deserve it for the action, but you deserve it for being caught - didn’t you see her cell? Or the flash?” Joseph asked, his hands emphasising the obviousness in both actions. “Never let cameras into one night stands, Mark, that’s just asking for trouble.”

“Yeah, but I mean, I was a little busy at the time, so I forgot about it by the time I was leaving-” 

“See, you do deserve it, what would’ve happened if you’d forgot your helmet up there? Or well, I guess that’s why you’re in this mess now, huh?” A new smirk broke out over Joseph’s lips, widening further at the roll of Mark’s eyes.

“Jesus, how many dick jokes have you got?” Mark chuckled, trying to ignore a fresh tinge of guilt and the words ‘impulse control’. 

“Too many from working with guys like you, Mark, but I think your friend is too easy on you, or not smart enough to-”

“Hey, hey, Mindy saved my life, alright, she’s the reason I got back - she saw me first - I’m here today because of her.” Mark warned, his tone a little more certain and his near-empty coffee mug working as a pointed finger. “If anyone’s smart enough, it’s her.” 

“She saw you first? What’d she say about it?” Joseph crossed his legs and sat back in his chair, obviously interested in the story not many people would hear. 

“Not much, she doesn’t think she helped out and it’s hard to get it through to her that if she didn’t see me, I would’ve died - without her, nothing else would’ve happened, no communications, no e-mails from my parents, no micromanaging, no support to AresIV, definitely no Hermes round trip, and absolutely no Mav to boost me into space, well, the Mav would’ve been there but, there wouldn’t be any point in using it…” Mark trailed off and shook his head, trying not to get lost in the darkness that liked to plague him at night. “She’s so smart and careful - she’s shy, but she definitely opens up around me after a while, best of all, her cat’s called Avocado, who calls a cat Avocado?” He laughed a little and shrugged, “But she won’t take it that she saved my life, she’s convinced herself she had nothing to do with it and trying to tell her otherwise never gets very far.” 

“And what about NASA?”

“Well, Venkat Kapoor - Mars mission guy? He loves her, like they really get on, you can tell they’re close ‘cause they do that nonverbal signal thing - they’re on the same wavelength - even though Venkat didn’t tell me about her until I asked.” Mark emphasised with a tut and a shake of his head. “And Mitch - Henderson - he likes her ‘cause he told me, he said ‘She’s-”

“I meant, what did NASA say about getting you back, Mark.” 

“Oh, right, well, they didn’t exactly say ‘Mark, you cost us about seven hundred million in total’, but they insinuated.” 

“Seven hundred million - and you’re still on their payroll? Jesus Christ, I wish I had job security like that… Seven hundred million… and you just wanna talk about Mindy.” Joseph tilted his head, pointing out the route their conversation took.

“You were vague, that’s not on me.” Mark deflected but Joseph raised his hands in defence, not owning responsibility either. 

“Alright, so other than pining for a NASA employee, what else are you up to?” Joseph asked with a quirk at his lips.

Mark drew him a short look before replying. He went onto mention how he was still without his license, not to mention an actual purpose at the minute and the only thing he really had to do was find an apartment in Houston and be present at a press conference on Monday morning. He finished with a sigh and Joseph shrugged, asking him if he’d rather be up there, but there was no uncertainty about that. With all the boredom and troubles that came with being an Earthman, he was glad for all of them. Maybe not the nightmares, but most of the other things he could deal with. It was better than being up there. 

After being told not to be a stranger to Joseph, Mark stepped into a few other departments to have slightly shorter visits to other staff who all treated him with the same excited response. He was offered the chance to help assist a hands-on class in both engineering and botany later that afternoon, but the fear of him doing something wrong and Annie having to drag him back to Houston by an ear had him declining for now, but not to count him out forever, he’d definitely be back for that. He left his alma mater with a smile and a peculiar sense of home he used to feel when he was a student. It wasn’t a present sense of home, but a memory of the feeling that he enjoyed the echoes of. 

The rest of the day was spent in a wander. Mark made it down the pier, in and out a few shops and in a queue at a coffee shop without so much as a murmur of his name, but still found his fill of the crowds. In fact, he had even made it home (via two trains, a cab and a stroll through a populated park) before anyone had called on him, and even then, it was just an elderly neighbour saying hello. Not being one to pass up on connection, Mark chatted with them for a good half hour before he shook Mr Robertson’s hand and went inside. It wasn’t long after he got in that he couldn’t stop himself from texting Mindy, still hungry for more contact while he sat beside his parents in their living room. 

Me: no hat was a success, you were  
right. and i meant to ask - how’s  
your seeds?

After catching his parents up on his day, telling them about his professors and their offers and his consideration for taking some of them on, his phone buzzed in reply.

Mindy: I’m not surprised, really.  
I think they’re okay, would you think  
I was a bad plant parent if I said  
I hadn’t phoned to check on them?

Me: not at all. maybe a little careless,  
irresponsible, negligent and apathetic.

Mindy: Wow. Did you just thesaurus.com  
the word bad?

“Mark, who’re you texting?” His mom interrupted him laughing at his own phone. 

“Mindy, I asked how her seeds were but she said she hadn’t checked on them, so I called her careless.” Mark said with a smile, but didn’t expand any further. 

“Did she get back to you about your conference?” His mom asked with a slightly aloof tone in her voice. 

“Yeah, she said she wants to go, which is good ‘cause she doesn’t like it when I say I still owe her, but I can class this as being nice or repaying a per cent of the debt without her shaking it off.” 

“Why do you feel you still owe her, son?” His dad asked from his chair while his mom’s hand went caringly to Mark’s head. “She obviously thinks whatever ‘debt’ you think you need to pay is gone.” 

“She saw me first, dad, she saw me _first_ and that’s really important, okay? I can’t just let her wave it off… it means something.” He didn’t go onto say how if she hadn’t seen him, he might still be up there or list the amount of things that could’ve gone wrong if she was any later than she was, but it sat in the crease of his brow. His mom’s hand ran down the back of hair, muttering about how he’ll need a haircut before Monday, but without being impolite or brusque, he stood and left to his room frustrated that no one seems to be listening to him when he stresses how critically essential Mindy was in his rescue. No one was listening to him and it felt more like no one could hear him - and that was far too uncomfortably familiar.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> yikes!! what a marathon. i'm so sorry, like i definitely didn't mean for it to go on for 5.5k like i even feel bad for writing this note bc im making you read even more!! so i'll keep it short and just say that we're going back to mindy next chapter for sure. and for a while. anyways, sorry it was so longggggg.. better luck next time - hopefully /:


	20. Chapter 20

The phone call that morning had taken her by surprise. When her phone started buzzing against the table, she stared at in with a strike of fear before picking it up. She was glad for being so tired since it hid the lurch she could feel in her throat. It didn’t take long for her to calm down, forget about her Mark-centred worries and just relax in the conversation. She did miss not having him across from her, but it was better than nothing and definitely had her in a better mood for the rest of the day. By the time Mindy left (her text tone insulted but not changed) with a hot breakfast to-go for her mom, the clouds she had drove under on her way out had cleared enough for the blue sky to be dominant along with a warm sun above the trees. 

Being helpful, she drove her mom to work and took advantage of being close enough to central Seattle on a nice day to visit some of the department stores she missed from Houston. She splashed on new weather-appropriate clothes for Houston, as well as a few things for Avocado from the pet stores she knew he’d like. And maybe she shouldn’t have found the mischievous smirk when she spotted the Mariners merch store in the mall, but she couldn’t help herself. 

It was late afternoon when she picked her mom up again, and as a treat, she took them to dinner after her mom complained of her neighbours insisting on visiting that night - Mindy surmised that they couldn’t visit if they weren’t home. With only a few days left of her break, she was caught between trying to make the most of it and spending the time laxly, by taking walks along her favourite trails and enjoying the smell of damp fir trees before going back to the fuming city. Besides, there was only one thing she had left that she really wanted to do that her and her mom used to do when she was young, but it would need to wait for the following night. Tonight, after their dinner out, they left the lights off for the prying neighbours benefit, lit a few candles and stuck on a movie as the three of them curled up on the couch - Mindy separating Avocado and her mom. After she replied to Mark she sent a quick text to Claire, asking after her seeds while the movie ran through it’s opening logos. She was gifted a picture of five fingernail-tall green shoots poking out the very top of the soil. After showing the picture to her proud mom, she forwarded it to Mark and switched her phone off; Harry Potter demanded full attention. 

Come Wednesday, she had already started packing for her and her mom’s night hike. There was a trail nearby that lead to the top of a clear hill and with all the light polution behind it, it wasn’t hard pushed to call it perfect for stargazing. It was the spot that her mom had taken Mindy too when she was younger that inspired her to start asking questions about space - ones her mom tried her best to answer but while her mom was there for the sparkle and shimmer of the lights, Mindy wasn’t satisfied with small blurbed answers on the internet. They almost always made it back here when Mindy came home and it was always a night well spent. They didn’t usually last more than a few hours in the cold dark, and we’re usually home before two in the morning, but they both enjoyed the time together. Mindy did take Avocado once but it turned out trying to find a cat in the dark wasn’t all that fun. 

With Avocado tucked in a ball on her bed, she patted him goodbye as she picked up the bag, fleeces, rugs and jackets to fling in the car while her mom gathered the flasks of steaming coffee and comfort food. The sun had already set when they were in their car and heading out, Mindy playing with the small stereo they took with them - it might be falling apart, missing buttons and the old aerial lovingly chewed by Avocado, but it never missed a trip. 

The last rays of light were staining the sky on the left above the trees as they climbed. It wasn’t steep but it was difficult when the ground was damp, causing a few slips and a little bit of laughter as they grabbed one another on the way down, getting both of them streaked in muck. When they reached the top, they worked in a routine to lay down the rugs, keep the corners down against the wind with their baggage and while Mindy put on some music, her mom twisted off the cap on the coffee flask. 

“Where’s the milk, mom?” Mindy asked, trying to balance a small lid of coffee in her left hand as she shifted extra rugs and rummaged in her bags. “Don’t tell me we left it in the car-” Mindy continued to feel around the bags for the small bottle they usually filled since her mom didn’t like milk while Mindy did, but she found nothing. 

“I don’t think I even packed any, I’m sorry, honey.” Her mom’s mouth twisted into an apology while Mindy thought back on her phone call the morning before - how Mark would raise a brow over Mindy complaining about a lack of milk on one night hike, never mind two years on another planet. “But look,” Her mom raised her finger to point, “the moon’s coming up over the trees.” 

Bright and low, she watched as it rose and tinged the trees in light while she hugged her knees. When she was younger she used to spend her time glancing through her telescope, pointing out different stars to her mom with her fingers, but now they rarely bother pointing out any but the main, recognisable ones they could see unaided. Neither of them seen the point in trying to point out small stars when her mom only enjoyed them for the light and Mindy knew them herself anyway. While Mindy turned the collar on her jacket up, her mom threw a blanket over her shoulders and moved to sit cross-legged beside her. 

“I would’ve thought you’d be sick of stars by now.” Her mom said with a smirk. “You see so many at work.”

“Never.” Mindy shook her head, pushing her glasses up her nose. “It’s better with your own eyes than on the screens.” 

“Alright, so where are the planets tonight?” Her mom asked as she lay down on her back. 

“You’re not gonna see any from that position, they’re over there-” Mindy said, pointing towards the moon. 

“Well, I’m not getting up again, so just talk to me about it and I’ll wait until they get a bit higher.” Mindy rolled her eyes at her mom’s disinterest but talked her through it anyway. 

“Alright, well, the brightest star under the moon on the left in Antares, you can see it now, or I can, and then above Antares but under the moon still, is Saturn and then... if you trail your finger across on a downward slope you’ll find… Mars.” The slightly orange light held her gaze until her mom interrupted.

“Is seeing Mars for you like me seeing my office on a day off?” 

“I don’t think so, it’s like… when you read about the pyramids and then go to see them on holiday - it’s like seeing something incredible with your own eyes after reading all about it.” Mindy mused, lost in her appreciation. “It’s amazing.” She finished softly.

“So tiny.” Her mom appreciated from lifting her head high enough to shove a rolled up fleece under her as a pillow. “Weird to think it’s actually huge.” 

“It’s smaller than Earth, mom.”

“Maybe-”

“No, it _is_.” Mindy reassured. Incorrect space facts had no place in the home of a NASA employee.

“Alright, Little Miss NASA, it _is_ smaller than Earth, but it’s not like it has populations or cities and countries to make it _feel_ small, it’s dusty and empty and I think if you were there, you’d say it was pretty big.” 

Mindy passed a glance over her shoulder to her mom, who wasn’t usually one for passing wisdom on planets. 

“What? I listen sometimes.” She said with a slightly smug shrug. “Besides, you found that volcano was erupting and I wanted to see what it was about - just because I don’t have a fancy degree doesn’t mean google is out of reach.” 

Mindy’s gaze returned to Mars, thinking about how her mom wasn’t wrong. The small orange light in the sky was massive in it’s own right, the vast desert truly was empty and when it was compared to the thriving life of Earth all cramped together, Mars really was colossal. She didn’t spend much more time considering it before she lay back too and began pointing out their favourite constellations and drawing out their own, laughing at their accompanying stories. It was childish and fun, but it didn’t put either of them off creating ridiculous tales to explain the connection between the stars above them. And maybe it was selfish to think of while she had company, but she missed Mark and sitting out here under the stars might be a little more special with an astronaut. Still, that didn’t mean she’d pass up on a night with her mom. 

Once their coffee was finished (Mindy passed up the offer of a third small cup), most of their snacks gone and the chill in the wind picking up, they decided to pack up and leave. Both of them were glad to see their car and get out the wind. As usual, it wasn’t far past two when they arrived home, finding Avocado prancing up the hall to greet them. Neither of them wasted much more time in getting to bed, especially not her mom who still had work in the morning. It meant that, when Thursday morning came, Mindy was allowed to lounge and lie in. She padded barefoot around the house followed by Avocado and as she stopped to make breakfast, he wound around her ankles. At midday she continued to potter around, picking up jackets and boots she had left strewn around and started to herd them back to her room to be packed. She never liked leaving her mom’s to go back to Houston, but this time she had a few things to look forward to - this time it wasn’t as bad. She was a little surprised to find that she was even excited for the press conference after she had managed to stop thinking about why it was happening, and of course, the baseball game that night. Plus, it would be good to find a working routine again, it might only have been a week but she wanted to get back to Mons and carry on her work there. And how could she forget her seeds? She was looking forward to seeing their progress herself and maybe even bragging a little bit that she has managed to finally, finally grow something. First though, before she got there, she’d need to leave her mom’s and with one night left she knew it wouldn’t be easy - her mom hated it as much as Mindy usually did.

Before her mom got home, Mindy attempted to tidy up a little by finishing off the dishes and trying to vacuum all the loose Avocado fur that would only irritate her mom after she left. She didn’t get far, however, when her phone buzzed in her back pocket.

[13:44:51] look at this fucking asshole. 

[13:44:55] asshole1.jpg received (open)

[13:45:11] Did you just send me a picture  
of a cat shitting on a plant?

[13:45:30] my poor plants!!

[13:45:58] That poor cat. Give him peace.

[13:46:20] this is why i’m a dog person. i  
hate cats i’m sorry.

[13:46:42] You just don’t know any good ones.

[13:46:55] i mean i respect avocado but  
this cat. this. cat. is an asshole.

Mindy didn’t even feel bad for laughing so openly at Mark’s latest bad fortune, in fact, if he was treating the cat as rudely in real life as he was in these texts, she might even raise her chin and say he deserves it. As if sensing an insult to his kind, Avocado sniffed at Mindy’s phone before turning away. 

“He just doesn’t know you, right, Avie? Or, at least, not yet.” With another buzz of her phone, her gaze fell to her screen.

[13:48:02] asshole2.jpg received (open) 

[13:48:18] he’s just looking at me!

[13:48:30] Where’s he from?

[13:48:48] hell. 

[13:49:04] no, he’s a stray but he has to go.

[13:49:35] Well, I think if you put out  
that Martian Hero Mark Watney  
needed rid of a cat, you’d find  
yourself catless pretty quick.

[13:49:54] so, you don’t want him?

[13:50:18] ...I have one already, thanks.

[13:50:52] but at least you’d know what to do!

[13:51:15] I’m having slight deja vu

[13:51:29] If I can grow some seeds  
on your insistence, you can deal  
with a cat.

[13:52:00] seeds don’t shit in your plants.  
they are the plant.

Mindy rolled her eyes and put her phone back into her pocket, carrying on with her cleaning and finally, packing. By the time her mom came home, arms full of too much takeout from Mindy’s favourite shop, Mindy had almost finished packing and already had her things looked out ready for the early start. When it got to this time, the last few hours of her last night home, she always considered just why she needed to work in Houston anyway. Every time she thought of JPL in California and how much shorter a journey that would be - she could drive from California to Seattle much easier than all the way from Houston. And even though JPL stood for Jet Propulsion Lab and was all about the robots and the tech and the engineering, she was sure she could slot herself in there somewhere. Maybe JPL and Houston had some sort of employee exchange program… except, she already checked that and they don’t. She didn’t really have the right qualifications for something in JPL either. She studied to play with satellites and that’s what she does - in Houston. It was far away, but she loved her job, really. It was only after seven on these last nights that she ever got cold feet, and she knew that when she woke up with her alarm going off at five, she’d be reluctant to leave but also eager to go back, too. Her mom, on the other hand, would just be teary and huggy and probably sneezy since she had already popped her last anti-Avocado pill earlier that morning. 

It was a regrettably late night considering the early start but even when Mindy’s head hit her pillow, aware that there were only a few short hours before she’d be up again, she couldn’t convince her mind to slow down enough to encourage the sleep she needed. At first, she was mindful of having her and Avocado’s tickets ready and planning where best to keep them - in the zippy pocket of her backpack, as usual - and how well she packed the things she bought here into her luggage, would they break in transport? Before her mind started to look a bit further forward with ideas on how to spend her weekend (adding more to her Mons project), before finally turning to an issue of presentation - what do people wear to press conferences? 

She sighed and brought the sheets up over her shoulder, trying to physically brush off any nerves about Monday. Whatever is going to happen, will happen - or so she told herself in the hope of drifting off. What she tried to focus on was that it wasn’t her press conference, she wasn’t talking, but she was the support. She was going as Mark’s friend in a roomful of strangers after his story. Mindy was finally going to put her decision to be his friend first, regardless of anything else, into action and just support him through what was most likely going to be a very _shit_ conference for him. And she was okay with that, she wanted to do it. 

She couldn't remember when she fell asleep but when her phone sang her alarm, she woke with a start. She could feel Avocado stir by her feet, meowing in distaste at the unusually early morning along with heavy footsteps along the hall of her mom. Neither of them hung around for breakfast, finding a rush and stepping over and around one another to get in the car and to the airport on time. At the gate, her mom, as usual, was in tears and Mindy did her best to keep Avocado downwind of her.

“And don’t forget to call again, or I’ll come over there.” Her mom threatened for the third time that morning.

“Well, maybe you should - next time, I mean, instead of me coming here, you come to Houston.” They had talked about it before but never with much enthusiasm, still, she got a promising nod from her mom as her flight was called to board. 

“And watch for Avocado, my body might hate him but I don’t - and those seeds, don’t you kill them now-” Her mom was still holding onto her sleeve as Mindy approached the flight staff. “And - Mindy-” 

“Mom, I’m going to Houston, not - _Mars_ ” She stuttered before she said it, but it was still true, it wasn’t as if it was life or death but it never stopped her mom from being so upset. 

“I know, but that’s what I was going to say…” Her mom’s eyes ran over the people around them, trying to insinuate who she was talking about without saying any names. “Don’t forget to be his friend.” Her mom rubbed at her arm and Mindy nodded in a promise. “And _listen_ to him, for god’s sake Mindy, stop saying he doesn’t owe you - you might not think he does, but he won’t see it like that - oh, and be _safe_ -” 

“ _Mom_ ”

“ _On the plane_.” Her mom laughed at Mindy’s roughly whispered reprimand. “Mindy, you’re a bit old for that talk now-” 

“You did that on purpose.” 

“Just to see you blush, honey.” Mindy rolled her eyes and shook her head at her mom. It wasn’t difficult to rile Mindy, but her mom knew how to do it just a little too well. 

“I am going, right now, before you embarrass anyone else.” 

With one last tight hug, Mindy pulled the strap of her bag higher on her shoulder, let her mom wave bye to Avocado from a distance and made her way onto the plane. Avocado rested on her lap in his much hated box, pawing at the fingers she stuck through the crate door. The flight wasn’t long and she was back in Houston for late afternoon after an expensive taxi to her door. Hauling cases up the front stairs and then again in the foyer into the lift made her curse herself for staying in a second floor apartment, but then again, at least her block had a lift. 

The rest of the weekend was as she had planned it to be - unpacking and laundry she didn’t manage at her mom’s, along with a refresher of her Mons project. She worked on that come Saturday afternoon and even though there was nothing left to add to it until she got back to her desk, she flicked through it all over again on Sunday. She didn’t want to tell herself she was distracting her mind as the news reminded her of the ‘imminent Mark Watney press conference’ happening tomorrow and broadcast live across numerous channels. She had had enough of hearing about it that by Sunday night she was falling through the back of her overly casual wardrobe, hoping to find something at least vaguely suitable for a day like hers.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i actually posted this without notes bc i forgot wow. okay so this was 3k shorter than the last one thankfully, but i have no hope for the next bit. what else. oh yeah, that actually is how you can find mars in the night sky but i dont know if you can do it without a telescope any more... google that. emmm.. oh yeah i'm not going back to mark for the rest of his week we can all assume he didn't get himself into any more disasters. also, sorry for the lack of... excitement? i feel like this chapter is just really boring bc its just bridging the end of mindys trip and then leaving me the time to cover monday better. which might end up split into two possibly ..more .. chapters. 
> 
> /:
> 
> anyways. let me know if its as boring as i think it is!!! ! ! !


	21. Chapter 21

It couldn’t be called jet lag, not really. It was only two hours of a difference, it didn’t count as ‘jet lag’. So, on Seattle time it was six in the morning and she was early, but on Houston time it was eight and she was late. _Very_ late. She didn’t even have the time to stop and appreciate her past self for laying all her things out for today, packing her bag and leaving her keys on the countertop all ready to be lifted in the morning. Mindy couldn’t even be impressed that it took her a brief twenty minutes to get herself out the door after throwing a glass of water half in her plant pot and half across her window sill. With no time to wipe it, she apologised aloud to the sill, shouted bye to Avocado - who had done nothing but watch as she ran around her apartment - banged the door closed behind her and ran off. She was too late to remember to feel nervous for the conference, for seeing Mark or even just for her first day back to work. With no time to wait on the lift, she bolted to the end of her landing and took her stairs, propelling herself out the main door and half vaulted into her car. She wasn’t exactly _speeding_ down the highways, but her driving style could definitely be classed as aggressive. 

Swiping her employee card at ten to nine gave her a moment to catch her breath and dump her bags at her desk. She hadn’t long brought her project papers out, spread them over her desk and logged onto her unit when Venkat stepped in, his usual brown suit changed for a crisp grey number that had Mindy giving an appreciative glance. 

“Someone’s fancy.” Mindy commented and Venkat flattened his tie with his hand. 

“Well, I thought I better smarten up - just in case.” 

“Just in case what? You get on tv?” Mindy raised her brow, not quite sure how high a possibility that was going to be. 

“Well, I mean, you never know, right?” Venkat asked, hunting for reassurance in his assumption. 

“I guess so... “ Mindy squinted, not being as convincing as Venkat had been clearly hoping for. “It’s not your conference this time, though.” Her comment had Venkat adjusting his suit jacket while he obviously considered whether it had been worth it to dress up or not.

“Anyway, I’m here for a reason - other than to be judged.” Giving her a pointed look, she pursed her lips in innocence. “I’m here ‘cause I was wondering if you wanted to come - to the conference, I mean.” Venkat cocked his head with his offer and cut over Mindy as she took a breath to answer. “I know, I know, ‘Annie has it ticketed’, but I’m sure I can get _you_ in - Annie let Mark have a plus one after what he did, so I think I should get one and even then, you should be in _anyway_ , so, come.” 

“I’m already going.” Mindy said plainly. “That’s what I was gonna say, I already have a ticket - not _on_ me - but, my name’s on one.” 

This time, Venkat’s brow dipped and he squinted at her. “How’d you manage that?” 

“Mark… I’m Mark’s... plus one.” 

“ _Huh_.”

“What do you mean ‘ _huh_ ’?” Mindy copied.

“Well, we knew he had one, but… I don’t know who wins that bet now.” Venkat’s hand went to rub over his jaw as his mind worked while Mindy sat, looking at him in askance. “We just had a bet running about who we thought Mark’s plus one was - you weren’t in the running and now we were all wrong so…”

“Well I’m glad I foiled your bet.” She said with a sarcastic smirk. “When should I be there for? I wanted to set my work up first so I don’t have to afterwards.” 

“You have about ten minutes before the press are let in, so I’d throw yourself together and get going, Mark’s already here.” 

There were the nerves again, appearing with vigor at the thought of seeing him. That twist in her stomach cut her voice so she nodded in reply instead, choosing to swivel in her chair back to her desk. 

“You should probably go sign in before the rush, maybe catch him before it starts.” Mindy nodded again at Venkat’s idea and muttered a strong ‘mhm’ as her gaze fell back to her screen. “Alright, Mindy, see you in a few.” 

“Okay.” Was all she could muster before clenching her jaw again. She waited until he was out of Mission Control before she closed her eyes and sighed. All that time spent away from him had her almost forgetting what it felt like to like him _and_ have him in close proximity all at once. She wasn’t sure how she’d feel when she saw him, solid and all in one place and not down her cell or in a text. Knowing she couldn’t hide in here all day, she forced herself up and away from SatCon, straightening herself out as she went. Reaching the escalator up to the conference floor, she saw Annie just disappear from the top. Mindy climbed, trying to catch Annie before she got too far.

“Annie-” Mindy shouted over the small beats of her ankle boots and the strong clicks of Annie’s heels a few times before Annie turned. 

“Mindy.” It was a statement, but there was surprise in her tone. “You know I can’t just let you in, it’s ticketed, you should’ve let me know before-” 

“No, no, I have a ticket, I was just wondering where to go.” Mindy tried to swallow her breathlessness as Annie looked confused. 

“How did you get a ticket? You didn’t ask me for me one, did you?” 

“No, I’m with Mar- I’m Mark’s extra... ticket, he gave his spare to me.” 

“You’re the plus one?” Annie’s perfect brow raised in quick disbelief with a gentle ‘huh’. Mindy frowned as Annie turned on her heels, her fingers calling over her shoulder for Mindy to follow. “Everyone’s waiting in here, the press are downstairs still, I’m just about to go get them.” 

Annie lead her into a suite she had never been, filled with soft couches, chairs, and a load of people she recognised. She immediately went to gravitate to Venkat, stepping carefully to the side of Teddy Sanders who she knew should probably intimidate her more than he did. 

“Miss Park, what’re you doing here? Kapoor not answering his damn phone? Let me tell you, he doesn’t answer for me either.” Teddy laughed a little with a pointed look at Venkat who shrugged in response. 

“I have a ticket, actually.” Mindy said, getting a little frustrated at how many people seem surprised she was here. “I’m Mark’s plus one.” She said, owning the title and raising her chin a little to the surprised, confused and intrigued glances that were passed between Teddy, Venkat, Mitch and now a few other staff members who had shifted conversation groups. 

“Where’d he go, anyway?” Teddy asked the group.

“Mingling.” Mitch replied briefly while Venkat pointed over Mindy’s head. Her eyes followed Venkat’s finger across the room and through the crowds, but Mark was never hard to find with a laugh, grin or energy like his. When she caught his eye, she smiled and lifted a hand slightly to wave. She flushed with nerves while Mark lit up in overt excitement. When his flashy grin and bright eyes were on her she could feel an unparalleled surge of attraction, one she hoped didn’t reach her cheeks. 

“You made it!” She was scooped up in his arms too quick for her to respond beyond hanging on with one hand on his shoulder and her other against the nape of his neck. He muttered her name over, his excitement pouring into her and showing as a blush that she hid against his shoulder and her hand. The pressure from his hands tight on her sides was comforting in a way she didn’t expect or remember it being from his hugs before. What energy he gave off felt warm, gentle and soft, but he felt so _real_ pressed against her and she was doused in a relief that felt like coming home after a long journey. 

“You know I wanted to go.” Mindy didn’t even realise he had literally lifted her off the floor until her heels tapped down and when his arms slid from her back, she felt a quick ache for more.

“And all I got was a handshake.” Venkat chipped in, diffusing the display as Mindy found her feet and stepped back. 

“Don’t lie, man, I hugged you in the lot earlier.” Mark said, his eyes still on Mindy as she reflected his grin. “How was the end of your trip?” 

“Quiet,” Mindy replied, the rest of the group completely gone in her mind. “How’s your garden?” 

“Fucked, really, that little gremlin has free reign today, but I’ll get him when I’m back.” She smiled at his response and Mindy was sure the smile he gave her back had an undertone, but she was interrupted too quickly for her to judge it.

“We should probably get to our area, Annie’s trying to be a shepherd again.” Mitch said quietly as he nodded to Annie who was waving her arms and guiding groups of chatting staff out the suite. Mindy stepped behind Venkat and Mark fell instep with her, giving her no time to think over what was happening. 

“So, Allison.” Mark said, leaving Mindy to blink in confusion. 

“Allison?” Mindy repeated, lost. 

“Yep, Allison.” 

“...Mindy?” She asked, not sure where he was going. 

“No, I _know_ you’re Mindy, Jesus.” He shook his head as if _she_ was being ridiculous. 

“Wait - am I Mindy or Jesus now?” She asked, quirking her lips to a smirk as he drew her a look before breaking into a grin. 

“I was talking about you saying Allison was your favourite, y’know, from The Breakfast Club.” He gave her arm a nudge with his elbow, urging her to remember. 

“ _Oh_ ,” She sounded out, everything becoming clearer before she shook her head. “No, no way.”

“What do you mean ‘no way’?” 

“We’re not talking about that.” She said, a playful smirk still at her lips.

“We’re not?” Mark asked, confusion pulling at his brows

“Nope.” 

“Then what’re we talking about?”

“We’re gonna talk about your blatant disrespect for cats.” Mindy replied, glancing up at him from the corner of her eye as he retracted.

“No, you can’t say it like that - disrespect for cats? No way, that cat is disrespecting _me_ , I mean, does he know what I’ve been through?” Mark exaggerated, splaying a hand across his chest. “And _he_ shits in _my_ plants? That cat is an asshole, there’s no two ways about it.”

“Well, did you tell him what you’ve been through? Maybe he’d be sympathetic if you told him, cats aren’t mind readers.” Mindy shrugged, still decidedly on the cat’s side. “And, you keep saying ‘this cat’, ‘that cat’, doesn’t ‘this cat’ have a name?” Her hands had raised to put air quotes around the poor feline’s point of reference. 

“It’s a stray, he doesn’t have a collar - not that I’d be getting that close anyway since he hisses like a fucking… thing that hisses, I don’t know.” Mark’s hand flapped off his struggle to compare the cat and Mindy laughed until she caught Mark watching her. 

“You should give him a name, he deserves a name.” Mindy came to a stop just beside Venkat and the rest of the staff at the far side of the open floor. Where they stood they could see the panel and the rows of seats all set up for the conference. She was happy to be standing all the way to the left of the panel, far out the way of any cameras or interest and just get the chance to watch something that would be blasted across the world with her own eyes. And to see Mark, in front of her, standing tall and frowning, with her own eyes. 

“Why? It’s not like he’s respecting me - or my plants.” Petulance was definitely in Mark’s tone and it made Mindy smile - after everything he had done, managed and survived through, his battle with a cat was what was bringing out struggling frustration. Mindy looked up at him with a brow raised and shrugged as Mark sighed in what sounded like defeat. “Okay, fine, I actually did give it a name.” 

“Am I going to have to cover Venkat’s ears or is this suitable for all audiences?” Mindy asked carefully as Venkat turned at the sound of his name. 

“I called him Egg.” 

“Egg?” Mindy repeated incredulously. “You called a cat _Egg_?”

“Did you just say he called a cat Egg?” Venkat cut in, looking just as disbelieving as Mindy. 

“Hold on,” Mark raised his hands in his defence “You called a cat Avocado and you’re judging me for calling one Egg? The only reason I even called it Egg was because that’s what goes with Avocado.” 

“You named him after Avie?” Mindy’s voice was quiet and unmasked in it’s surprise.

“Just ‘cause I don’t know any other cats and avocado and egg go together, right?” Mark shrugged and looked to Venkat for back up, asking ‘right?’ again but Venkat just muttered ‘egg’ and turned away again. 

“They go together?” Mindy repeated. 

“Yeah, y’know, they fit - you see it on menus, avocado and egg - it’s an option - and I thought since you’ve got Avocado and I had a cat that smelled bad, I technically had the Egg.” 

“Mark?” Annie called, interrupting Mindy’s disconnect with reality and snapping her back to the present. “Mark, come _on_ , you need to go wait by the side of the panel before I introduce you-” She hooked her arm round his and dragged him off as he called ‘see ya’ to the group they had been standing with. 

“Was Mark saying he got a cat?” Venkat asked, verbally bringing her back into the larger group of staff she knew. 

“No, there’s a stray that keeps ruining his garden - he hates it.” Mindy explained, her mind still a little dusty from the sentiment. 

“But he called it ‘Egg’?” Venkat prodded, bringing in a few other interested and confused looks. 

“Apparently.” She muttered, her eyes unfocused on Mark’s back as he was pulled into a corner to wait on Annie’s welcome. Mindy was still trying to take it in herself as the press filtered in efficiently, filling the seats in only a few minutes, setting up cameras and microphones as they went. Mindy watched as the scene changed from empty conference floor, to a buzzing hive, while she was still not sure what to make of what Mark told her. 

“Good morning, everyone, thank you for joining us today to clear up a bit of a Mark-Special faux pas, followed by an open question panel.” The throngs of press laughed politely as Annie glanced over to Mark. Mindy followed Annie’s gaze to see Mark looking at his feet with his arms across his chest; he was just as happy about this being dragged up again as Mindy was hearing about it in the first place. “I would like to start us off with a few words from Teddy Sanders.” 

As Annie brought Teddy on to talk about how much Mark meant to NASA (not numerically by the seven hundred million dollar cheque), Mindy drifted. She remembered why she was hesitant about coming today and she was realising those worries were still relevant. This press conference was for Mark to apologise for not being the perfect dream of a hard working, honest American Hero that the press had tried to cast him as. Mindy had previously worried that it would upset her to hear of him with someone else, but she had misplaced her unrealised envy. What she was really troubled about was that Mark had nothing to apologise for, yet he was being applauded to a panel beside Annie and Teddy to publically throw himself under the bus for being a human being. Mindy’s eyes scanned the crowds, wondering how many people behind the cameras or the microphones had been lonely enough to do the same thing Mark had. To be even worse, to cheat on partners or spouses and not be made to apologise internationally on live television. People didn’t like to hear it, but humans did things to suit themselves. Mindy’s mom had been right to ask her if she would have done the same in Mark’s position - to stop being so lonely for a few hours - because she would, every time. If she had been so isolated, alone, completely singular for over two years with not a soul to talk to, no cats to pet, no life at at all… she wasn’t sure she’d last as long as Mark did before she went out in search of any sort of connection she could get. Skin was skin and so long as it was warm and willing, who would turn it down after all that time alone? 

And here she was, listening to him apologise for taking that opportunity. 

“Like Annie said, thanks for getting here on short notice, but you guys are pretty good at getting to me on short notice.” Mark grinned and the press laughed again, but Mitch shifted uncomfortably beside Mindy and she could tell he was feeling just as sympathetic for Mark as she was. 

“It’s, uh, maybe a little ironic that if you lot had been a little bit more on the ball a couple of weeks ago, we wouldn’t be here today.” Mark raised a brow and a quiet chuckle waved through the tightly packed rows of presses. Cameras flashed on, video cameras continued recording and voice recorders were held up towards him, as if the numerous microphones tied together at his place on the table weren’t enough. It sometimes didn’t quite register to Mindy how international Mark had become, especially when she was almost used to having him a text away or when she had plans with him just tonight while the rest of the world would tune in to see the best clips from this conference (if they weren’t watching already). “That’s not an invitation to stalk me any more than you do, y’know.” 

Annie smiled politely beside Mark, but even Mindy could tell Mark was going to get an earful later. Still, it wouldn’t be anything Annie could swipe off as Mark being his delightful, sarcastic self if there was any backlash over Mark being less than ‘accommodating’. And that was another issue, anything Mark said while under the scope like this would be analysed and picked apart for the next few days - even something he meant nothing by would be dragged through the mud just because the media were here to make his life a bit more difficult. 

“But, what can I say? I got caught, you all got me, so next time I’m gonna have to Mrs Doubtfire it before I leave the house, right?” He smiled again, but it was nowhere near his eyes and while Mindy knew this wasn’t going to be gentle, inspiring or Mark’s introduction to the stand-up comedy circuit, it was more heartbreaking than she was expecting. “So, yeah, sorry for drama, I’ll be a good Earth-based astronaut from now on.” 

Mark glanced back to Annie, looking for some direction as Annie picked up the silence after the quickest non-verbal ‘Is that it?’ at Mark. “Okay, we’ll open up for questions-” Annie was immediately cut off by a roar of press houting after Mark, while Annie pointed and named the journalists allowed to ask. “Eddie Wills.”

“Eddie Wills, NBC,” He introduced himself while the rest of the press went quiet. “Are you still in contact with Ms Clark?” 

“She didn’t give me her real name never mind her number so, no.” Mark said, plainly, leaving a hint of smirk but nothing more as the press surged again. 

“Would you be if she had?” 

“Uh, well, if that's how she treats first dates I'd hate to see the second.”

“CNN.” Annie shouted, letting them ask their question. 

“Martin Sinclair; what name did she give you?” There was a clear mischief in Martin’s tone, one that wasn’t reflected in Mark’s.

“Let’s just say, I’m an idiot for believing her.” 

“El Mundo, Xavier Garcia, do you regret it?” 

“After all the tech I had to fix, refix, destroy and fix again between Mars and re-entry, I regret being caught out by a freaking cell phone.” 

“Was she worth it?” Mindy couldn’t place where the question came from, but even she frowned at the tone of it.

“What a terrible question, next, please.” Mark said with a slight laugh, but it was clear he found nothing funny with the question.

“Andy.” Annie pointed to a woman in the front row, not letting Mark say any more than a few words at a time.

“Andrea McCarthy, BBC, are you seeing anyone else?” Mindy could only see the back of the woman’s dark head, but she could easily see Mark wince, then pulling at his jumper. 

“Hey, Annie - does this say NASA?” Annie said nothing, just looked at him like he had lost it, while mouthing something that looked like ‘this is live’. “Teddy - this does say NASA, right?” 

“Yes, it says NASA, Mark.” 

“Then why are we treating this like The Bachelor? Can we talk about something else?” 

“Oh my God, he’s gonna get us defunded.” Venkat whispered by Mindy’s side while she couldn’t stop herself from laughing at Mark’s answer. 

“So you're single?” Someone from the crowd shouted.

“Something like that.” Mindy knew it was selfish hope that had her stomach yank and her throat dry, but she swallowed against it and kept the heat out her cheeks when she looked up to catch Mark’s eye for a moment. More questions came and Mark continued to answer them in a few words or less, making Annie happy, the press happy and, most importantly, himself more comfortable with the more technical questions.

“Next question?” As Annie pointed to another woman a little deeper within the crowd, Mindy missed the question over the snaps of the cameras.

“Yeah, it’s getting easier - I’m used to the gravity again, it’s always sore on your feet for the first while, but since I was up there so long, I’d say the pain is only now really going away… food is definitely better here, like if you’re going up there, pack pizza rolls.” Mark said, grinning as he found himself more comfortable with questions about himself rather than his actions. “What I would’ve done for a klondike up there.” Mark laughed, genuinely lighting up the room to a point where even Annie and Teddy smiled, causing the cameras to light up the room like a stadium.

“Nina Mahmood, Sky News, what’s next for Mark Watney? Are you going back out there?” 

“I’m assuming by ‘out there’ you mean ‘space’, but I think if the opportunity would arise, my parents would ground me until I’m dead - or they’d just straight up kill me if I said I was going.” Another bout of laughter filled the room. “Really, though, I would be leaning towards no just because, for one, did you see the bill I’ve sent NASA, those guys aren’t gonna trust me near a manned mission ever again - for another, I kinda like Earth, I’m good here.” 

“Any leftover missions to finish, Mark?” A shout came from the crowd, causing Mark to ask the reporter to wave so he could find them. 

“There you are, not really, I finished what I could while I was still up there, y’know, playing with the chemcam - that really _really_ annoyed Johanssen - she doesn’t trust me with that at all - but since I got back with just myself, everything is still up there, so whoever’s going next might be able to pick up some stuff, but there’s nothing left to do down here.” Mark shrugged and leaned back from the microphones, ready for the next question before he leaned in again to add something. “Oh, except the data I was sending back for all my potato plants, I think that’s still getting analysed in…-”

“Half between NASA and Austin.” Teddy pitched in. “It’s the nearest university with suitable botany equipment.” 

“We’ll take three more questions and then we’ll wrap up.” Annie said, causing the press with unanswered questions to push forward, arms raised. 

“Huff Post, James Ray, if there’s no missions left, what’s next?” 

“I have no idea, and I feel like I’m eighteen again, my parents breathing down my neck to get a job and stop playing with plants, but I come back to NASA in November for some full time or part time, or ‘turn up and do some damn work, Mark’ sort of shifts, so I think they have stuff planned for me, but at the minute I’m just getting back on my feet - my sore feet.” 

“Craig Daniels, Hello Magazine, any confirmation that you’re modelling Armani’s winter collection?” 

“Jesus Chr- is that a real story?” Mark looked to Annie who nodded with a tired sigh and a brief roll of her eyes. “Yeah, okay, no that’s definitely not happening - but thanks for giving Martinez fuel to roast me with, ‘cause I know he’s watching.” 

“Okay, last question-” 

“Steve Michaels, ABC, rumours of university lecture tours have been spread, any truth to this?” 

“I haven’t heard anything about that either, but I guess that’s more plausible than the Armani thing… I haven’t y’know, heard about that, but that sounds kinda interesting-” Mark glanced at Annie who was shaking her head very slightly, enough to stop him from agreeing to something on a live broadcast, “But, no, no truth.” 

“Alright, thanks to everyone who was here today, to Mr Sanders for taking the time and Mark.” Annie tried to finish while a reporter shouted from the crowds. “We’ll be sure to keep everyone updated on any further news, events or mission status’ in the coming weeks, thank you.” As Annie stood, Mark and Teddy followed her, making their way off the panel while reporters shouted more questions just in case they got an answer.

“Mark, any last words?”

“Last words?” Mark asked, just out of range of the microphones before stepping back and leaning over the small piles of them on the table. His eyes ran through the crowds, looking for someone in particular when his eyes settled on Mindy. She stepped to the side, making sure he was definitely looking at her and by the way his eyes followed hers, she had her answer. He started to grin, a small chuckle in his throat before he took a breath. “Yeah, y’know, Avocado is a great name for a cat.” 

Mindy’s hands went immediately to cover her face while Venkat, Mitch, and a few other staff members all turned to look at her in unison. The heat on her face was like nothing she had ever felt and she didn’t even want to know how it looked. The crowds of press lit up at his last words, shouting for an explanation while Venkat muttered ‘Dear God’ by Mindy’s side and Mitch laughed openly. If she had taken her hands away from her face quicker, she might have noticed a few journalists looking over to the small gatherings of staff before turning back to chase Mark who had been swiftly lead out the back somewhere. 

“Well, they asked a stupid question and they got a stupid answer.” Venkat said thoughtfully and laid a hand on her shoulder. “Let’s get out of here, Mons is waiting.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i should call this chapter 'we reached 70k and they havent even kissed yet' tbh. but i hope you enjoyed this bit, i feel like we're finally getting somewhere but i definitely still need way more mark/mindy interaction, idk about you guys but i definitely need more of them together. 
> 
> me @ myself hurry tf up
> 
> also thank fffuck for no texts bc jesus do you know the the amount of html fiddling those things take. good god.


	22. Chapter 22

She needed to get herself under control. Mindy had made her way to the bathroom, trying to splash some water on her face that was still way too flushed. At least her makeup was mostly waterproof, thankfully, as she tried to fan herself with a couple of paper towels. The conference had largely been a success, Venkat had been examining the immediate new outlets opinions on the matter, and seemed positive about it. But those last words still happened, and she was sure, for her sake, Venkat was purposefully not mentioning anything Avocado or avocado related. She had immediately fizzled into a vicious red when Mark made his last announcement, and now she struggled to explain why she was so embarrassed since, really, it was nothing to be flustered over. Her best guess was because, in a conference broadcast to billions, he referenced an old text that now felt like an inside joke between them, which has thrown the media on a goose chase and left Mark and Mindy the only ones completely in the know. He made something just between the two of them and then flaunted it across the world, telling them there was a mystery and _she_ knew what it was. Surely the atmosphere Mark created wasn’t only palpable to her. Or maybe it was. Either way, she couldn’t be more hooked on him if she tried. It had been a quick turn around from denial to acceptance, but it was only worsened (or deepened) by seeing him for the first time in what felt like too long. 

Once her face had mostly calmed to a soft blush rather than furious stripe, Mindy returned to Mission Control. The double doors swished shut behind her and she could hear buzzing from across the room immediately. She had only just turned down the aisle back to her desk at SatCon when one of her colleagues from Launch turned to her. 

“Mindy, your phone is going batshit, been buzzing for ten minutes - we almost had maintenance down here before we figured out what it was.” She could feel her face heating up again, embarrassed over causing a fuss as well as knowing exactly why this fuss was happening. “Really, ten minutes straight buzzing...is it broken?” 

“Probably.” She deflected, sinking into her chair. “Thanks, Greg.” 

Mindy reached for her phone and, without looking at the exact amount of missed messages and calls, put it to silent and turned it face down on her desk. She didn’t want to read them and she definitely didn’t want to know what her mom was saying - and she _would _be saying something. She tried not to think of all the people who would know the connection and focus on her work, but the pull of indecent satisfaction to have one over on the world with Mark - and for some of her friends to have a slight idea of it - was almost too much. She wasn’t a smug person, but when it was handed to her on a plate by proxy, she couldn’t ignore it. Still, her work was important, she needed to keep her eyes on the volcano, checking for new evidence, updates, changes in surface temperature, changes in the amount of igneous rocks, changes in… her satellite engineering friends from college were probably going wild right now…__

“ _Changes_ in surface chemical build up.” She prompted herself back to her computer, clicking around and waiting on her satellites to send her the data back. It was taking too long and she was far too distracted. Muddled was the only word to describe it without profanity. There were too many things to work through, too much to think about; the hug, the cat, the panel - the last words. The worst part was she was meeting with him later and she didn’t know what to say. She wasn’t angry, maybe even endeared, but definitely confused. Mindy supposed that she did sort of _tell_ him to say Avocado was a great name for a cat - but that was too long ago, in a text late at night that was quickly discarded by both of them.

Something she couldn’t discard, however, was the hug. The feeling of his hands on her sides wasn’t something she wanted to forget. In fact, she hoped, when they met up again later, she would get another to feed her new addiction. When her computer beeped with her data and screeds of numbers and correlating coordinates flashed up, she found herself in no fit state to make any sense of it. She needed a break to clear her head, or at least take a breath and push it all to the side for the moment. She glanced at her phone in consideration before she grabbed it and made her way behind her desk to the break room, pouring out a lukewarm coffee and heading to a quiet table.

She placed her phone face up on the table, watching the blue notification light blinking in distress after too many missed messages. She flexed her fingers before pushing the home button and unlocking it, finding forty-three unanswered messages. There were a few missed calls too, but at least she knew none of them were going to be getting a call back. She scrolled down the list, finding the worst from her mom first. 

[10:25:10] “avocado is a great name for a cat”

[10:25:32] explanation???

[10:32:34] Mom, I’m at work. What do you want me to say? I didn’t make him say it.

[10:33:00] obviously!! the picture told me more than enough.

[10:33:20] What picture?

Her mom replied with a link to journalists twitter profile who had snapped a group shot of the staff after Mark’s ‘last words’. Mindy was centre, her hands over her eyes and her hair over the rest of her face, Mitch was laughing and leaning against the wall while Venkat grimaced behind her. The caption was simple; ‘Staff reactions’. There were a fair amount of likes and retweets, but nothing too serious and her name was nowhere in sight. 

[10:35:03] Oh.

[10:35:13] oh indeed.

[10:36:30] you better phone me later.

[10:37:14] I might miss you, I’m going out tonight.

[10:37:36] expecting a late one? where are you going?

[10:38:05] Don’t know yet.

[10:38:21] ??who with? stop making me draw blood

[10:39:20] Don’t make the face. I’m going out  
to watch the mariners/cubs game with Mark. Don’t  
make that face.

[10:39:29] /:

Her mom made the face while Mindy closed her eyes with a painful sigh. She didn’t have the time to explain that it wasn’t anything special like that face was insinuating. She left the thread with her mom and scrolled through the rest of the list. She had been right in assuming her college friends were the ones hitting up her phone. Streams of ‘Isn’t your cat called Avocado?’ and ‘Your cat is more famous than anyone I know’ were only put to shame by the mass of ‘Are you dating Mark Watney?”. She replied to none of them, finding it a ridiculous question to ask after a press conference tidying up a very anti-relationship blunder. Mindy also started to feel guilty over the satisfaction she wanted to feel about being in cahoots with Mark, forgetting that this conference wasn’t ever meant to be _fun_ or _mischievous_. She didn’t reply to any of the Avocado-related texts either, she wasn’t really in the mood to talk to anyone about it. In fact, the only being she wanted to talk to about it was Avocado and she wasn’t exactly about to excuse herself from work to talk to her accidental-celebrity cat. 

Before she locked her phone again, she noted a text from Venkat - one she probably couldn’t ignore even if she wanted to.

[10:35:20] He’s an idiot, isn’t he?

[10:43:22] No, it’s fine, it’s not like Avie’s going  
to be annoyed by it or anything. But if I meet  
another cat called Avocado, I’ll be sad.

[10:44:10] Give it a year and I bet you’ll be  
hearing of kids called Avocado.

[10:44:52] He doesn’t have that much influence.

[10:45:35] Oh, he does. Definitely. And look at this-

Venkat forwarded her a link from one of the online Houston newspapers where the headline simply read ‘Avocato?’. Mindy spent no time even glossing the subheadings or the article before she text Venkat back. 

[10:46:01] I can’t decide if I think it’s funny or not. If  
I was into puns, maybe I’d be jealous of not thinking  
of it myself.

[10:47:12] Just watch the news outlets over  
the next few hours if you’re not sure  
how much influence he has. Hint:  
it’s already on CNN.

She put her phone down after that, intent on finishing her coffee up here without following Venkat’s advice to look at the surge in cat puns across her social media. What she wanted to do was soak it in, accept it, and move on. So her cat was sort of famous - no one knew it was _her_ cat apart from very few NASA staff, her mom, college friends she never really saw any more and her neighbours. None of them would be the type of people to point her out, she had nothing to worry about by the way of being implicated in the cat discussion. Above that, he was just a _cat_ , it wasn’t as if he was going to be ‘spotted’ and light up the press. What Mark had done was harmless, he hurt no one and just gave the press something to chew on for a while and get them off his back, and Mindy was fine with that. The only thing she was maybe a little miffed over was the lack of communication from Mark himself. She had already checked her thread with Mark only to find their last text from a few days ago. Assuming that wherever he got hauled off to had him busy, she decided not to text him first, she’d see him later anyway. They could talk about what happened then. After another one of those hugs. 

For now, she couldn’t put off her work any longer. She made her way back to her desk and instead of keeping her phone on silent, she switched it off. Work was for work, not for grooming all her social media pages looking for references to her own cat. Mindy did, eventually, get to her work after another half hour of glancing at her phone (despite it being off), but after putting it in her bag she found a threatening concentration - one that told her if she didn’t start concentrating she’d only panic over her plans for that night. Venkat visited her by mid afternoon, but gratefully said nothing about the conference and only asked about her projects and any recent developments. He left after a few minutes and made his way around other desks and workers, asking them for updates and reports. 

She worked well for a few more hours, managing to piece together enough new (albeit very slight) updates on her Mons reports to be regarded as enough work for her shift. Her conclusions were still too wide to bear any significance with some of the data fluctuating enough to be frustrating. But most of that, along with her concentration, had been shunted by half five as she started to glance impatiently towards the door. They hadn’t arranged a time to meet, nor even a place to go, but plans were plans regardless of how vague and Mindy was almost beside herself with nerves. She thought about texting him to ask where and when but she supposed if he hadn’t text her- the striking realisation that her phone had been off for the best part of six hours had her diving into her bag and turning on her phone. Forty minutes ago Mark had text her, telling her everything she needed to know to boost her nerves ten fold.

[16:50:00] first mate! ready to lose? i was thinking  
the fourth nearest dive bar just since the press  
will be crawling to find me tonight. But  
i’ll come find you at 5:45 and we’ll head out.  
also p.s sorry but youre playing taxi ):  
they’re still keeping my license hostage

She had ten minutes left to panic. She already felt sick, her hands were sweaty and no amount of pushing them against her cold deskside drawers was helping. For one thing, however, Mindy was glad to be driving. At least that way she would have to pay attention to the road and maybe not watching Mark would give her a chance to calm down. She lost hope for that chance when the Mission Control doors swung open and her heart missed a beat and then went straight to palpitations. She calmed again when it was only Venkat, but it was short lived when Mark followed behind him, tall, broad and grinning. Not giving her any more time to panic or prepare, they headed straight to her desk.

“Mindy, I didn’t know you had plans tonight.” Venkat said, adjusting his glasses in his only tell of knowing the undertone of the conversation before it started. Venkat had obviously managed to add up Mindy’s clear embarrassment from that morning, along with all the other signs that were all pointing to Mark. 

“I never had the time to tell you.” She replied, trying to remain as neutral as she could, adjusting her own glasses and wiping her other hand off her jeans. 

“That’s alright, Mark filled me in.” Venkat squeezed Mark’s shoulder with a sly smirk at his lips, holding Mindy’s gaze all the while. “Told me all about it.” 

“There’s two conversations going on here and I don’t know what the other one is.” Mark said suspiciously, while Mindy and Venkat both worked to vigorously deny any ulterior conversation or tone - but the look from Venkat had Mindy sinking inside; Venkat was definitely on to her now. 

“I don’t want to keep you guys, game’s starting soon, right?” It sounded a little more genuine this time, but Venkat still couldn’t keep a glint out his eye when he looked at Mindy. 

“Yes, and we’re gonna kill it.” Mark grinned, his boast not challenged while Mindy found herself too taken by Mark’s belief and optimism for a moment before stuttering back. 

“No way, Mariner’s are gonna… probably suck a lot.” Conceding that if her night was going the way her day had, her team weren’t going to win; they were going to lose catastrophically, be hopelessly judged by the referee and then maybe get a little drunk with the other team. 

“Nah, they’ll give a good fight, but seriously, it’s starting and I wanna see first throw.” Mark cocked his head towards the door before looking back at Venkat. “I’m not getting her in trouble, am I? Making her leave early?” 

“Mindy leaving early is actually considered a myth, I’m just here to see if it happens.” 

“Yeah, I remember that from last time, guess it doesn’t apply to me.” Mark said thoughtfully, nudging Venkat who only raised his eyebrows in agreement. “You’re just being too accommodating for me, that’s all - right, Mindy?” 

“Something like that.” Venkat answered before she could, leaving her to give a pursed smile while she lobbed her things into her bag and tried not to think about how Mark was right. 

“You coming this way?” She asked Venkat, hoping for safety in walking out of mission control as a trio since her heart was in her throat now she was standing and ready to go.

“No, I’ve got some stuff to deal with in here.” There was a slyness to the smile he gave Mindy and as she squinted at him to figure it out, Mark was grabbing him into a goodbye hug. 

“Alright, buddy, I’ll see you later, don’t work too hard - and water your damn office fern before you kill it - I’ll be checking on it.” Venkat raised his hands in mock-defence and Mindy tutted and shook her head in fake disappointment before Mark turned on her, too. “You can’t act like that either, I know you forgot about your seeds for a week.” 

“Claire was looking after them, they lived, okay?” She said, finally finding a way through her nerves to look him in the eye. “Besides, I planted new seeds at my mom’s and they’re still alive, too.” There was a small sense of pride that came through in her tone while Mark looked suitably impressed. 

“You’re coming for my records, aren’t you? First woman on Pluto to grow turnips, that’ll be you, and no one will even know who I am after that.” 

“I think you’ll be safe, Mark, we don’t have any planned trips to Pluto.” Venkat cut in, still sitting on the edge of Mindy’s desk. “But I’d watch out, she’s still coming for you-”

“We should go, it’s almost six” Mindy said, cutting Venkat off with a dangerous look before he insinuated anything else. Fortunately Mark agreed and with another ‘see you later’ to Venkat, he lead the way out of Mission Control. 

“So you planted your own seeds?” He asked as they passed the first set of doors.

“Sort of, my mom heard I’d been keeping mine and she wanted some, so I planted them for her and all she has to do is water them.” Mindy shrugged, walking in step with Mark through the corridors towards the exit, her heart still squeezing but the beating was definitely slowing. “I haven’t checked on her, but I’m sure she’s been doing it.” 

“What did she plant?” 

“Uh…” Mindy squinted as she thought. “Car..donias?” 

“That’s not a flower, Mindy.” Mark laughed, holding a door open for her, letting her shuffle through. “I think that’s the used car dealership off the ‘90.” 

“All I know is they began with a ‘C’.” Mindy sighed and rolled her eyes. “So, you’re safe, there’s no way I’m coming for your records with ‘cardonia’.” 

Mark chuckled, pushing his shoulder into the next set of double doors and letting her go again. “That’s true, kinda sad though, I was looking forward to the chase.” Mindy eyed him briefly, but caught nothing more than his staple kind smile before she rummaged through her bag for her car key. 

“Were you trying to get your license back today? Was that where you were after the conference?” Mindy asked, changing the subject away from anything with a possible double meaning.

“Kinda.” Mark said plainly. Mindy almost rushed to change the subject again, feeling a sort of hesitation from Mark to talk about what happened, but he pressed on before she could say anything else. “I think Mitch told the resident shrink I was on my way back, so when Annie pulled me off the panel, I got dragged down to isolation for a few hours with that guy.” 

Mindy’s gaze dropped from Mark to the floor as they walked, feeling bad for wondering why he had text her all day when he was busy being analysed. “Did they say when they’d give you it back?” 

“No, ‘cause…” Mark tilted his head, obviously thinking about how to explain the issue as he pushed his shoulder into the last door out into the parking lot. “They say ‘cause I was up there for so long, they gotta make sure I don’t have any ‘lasting mental damage’ that could ‘prove difficult’ when moving at, or controlling, ‘high speeds’.” He shrugged and half rolled his eyes. “I’ve tried to tell them I didn’t pass out in the car driving to Chicago, I didn’t freak out on the flight from the landing zone back to Houston and I don’t get panic attacks when I have to get a taxi if I ever want to go anywhere.” He rhymed off the three issues on his fingers before stuffing his hands back into the pockets of his hoodie, following Mindy across the lot. “They want to run some psych tests on me and I don’t really want to deal with any more freaking tests.” 

“Wouldn’t it be easier just to get it over with?” Mindy asked quietly, not trying to rile him as she beeped her car open. 

“Maybe, but why should I let it be easy for them?” Mark asked, his playful smirk sitting at the edge of his lips as he slid in the passenger side, but Mindy could see there was something else behind just being stubborn. “But, I said I’d go see him next time I’m here - which will be soon ‘cause I really need to find an apartment.” 

“You’re still looking?” Starting the car, she was glad to be looking out the windscreen onto the traffic rather than Mark - it gave her a chance to really catch her breath and push her heart down to where it was supposed to be.

“Yeah, I got some ideas, mostly out of the city, more suburb-y.” Mark gestured with a flick of his hand upwards. “Y’know, North Houston.”

“I’m sort of North-Western, it’s quiet but it takes a while to get here in rush hour.” Mindy said, thinking about the direction of her apartment as she crossed the junction out of NASA. “You haven’t told me where I’m going, yet.” Shooting an expectant side glance to Mark who sat up and apologised. 

“Yeah, sorry go towards Pasadena, there’s a really shitty bar near there.” 

Mindy lifted her eyes from the road to glance at Mark, somewhat sceptical. “This car is like brand new, Mark, I need all my tyres.” 

“It’s not that shitty, it’s only Pasadena - it’s a dive but it could easily be worse.” Mark shrugged and sat back again, listing some of the apartment blocks he had been looking at while Mindy tried to stop thinking about how surreal the situation was. All that time spent with him all those millions of miles away and here he was sitting in her car, talking to her about apartments on their way to watch a baseball game. “Just somewhere the press wouldn’t be looking for me, but is still within reach of NASA, y’know? The apartment, I mean.” Mark said with a shrug, but Mindy felt sorry that he had to think like that. “But I guess that applies to everything else about me too, now.” 

The rest of drive had calmed her enough to find an even pace of breath, she laughed at his stupid jokes about her being the first woman on Pluto, growing a jungle just to better him, and, of course, she found a small confidence in her team - enough to taunt him with. When she parked on a side street, she raised a brow at their location. 

“You weren’t kidding, huh.” She said, unclipping her seat belt. “Dive bar was really accurate.” 

“I’ll protect you from criminals.” Mark said with a grin. “I mean, what do gangs have that Mars didn’t?” 

“Guns, probably.” Mindy said, being sarcastically thoughtful. “But, maybe Mars did have guns - were the squirrels and rats that NASA puts on Mars packing?” 

“Oh yeah, those squirrels have a mean shot.” Mark replied, selling his sincerity with a firm nod as he passed her her bag from the back seat. “But you gotta watch out for the kangaroos since Mars is really in Australia - they’re sneaky bastards.” 

Mindy laughed as she got out the car, locking it and waiting on Mark to walk around before they crossed.

“What if it doesn’t have a tv?” She asked, making a judgement on the outside of the building. “You wanna go somewhere else?” 

“Nah, if it doesn’t have a tv, I guess you’ll just have to talk to me.” Mark shrugged and she felt it against her arm. 

“I think I'll manage that.” Mindy said decisively. Her nerves might be rustling in a knot in her stomach (an improvement) but that didn't stop her heart racing over a few beats whenever she caught his eye. “I guess it depends, though.”

“On what?” Mark asked, pushing the door of the bar open for Mindy. “Whether there's anyone better to talk to?”

Mindy chuckled and shook her head, “No, not that, I meant whether or not you'll want to talk to me.” Her hand went into her bag, reaching for something to demystify the mischievous smirk at her lips. When she found what was she was looking for, she spun on her heels to face him as they stopped by a favoured booth. She grinned when she adjusted the Mariners cap on her head, looking proud. “I mean, it might be too difficult after your crushing defeat.”

“Oh, come on.” Mark said, resting his hands on his hips before lifting his hands helplessly. ”That's just unfair.” 

“Not my fault you're not a real fan with no cap of your own.” Mindy teased with a small shrug before she climbed into her side of the booth. “And they have a tv, so I guess that means I don’t have to talk to you, right?” 

“If I can even bring myself to look at you in that ridiculous hat - and you thought mine was bad.” Mark tutted, his irony making Mindy raise her brow with the comparison. 

“You think this Mariner’s cap is on the same level as your fishing and incognito cap?” 

“Definitely, are you serious? My incognito hat is so much better than any Mariner’s cap.” Mark argued, disregarding Mindy’s Mariner’s cap with a snort and a roll of his eyes. 

“Alright, fine, me and my cap will leave you alone to go get a round.” She muttered while shifting out from their table. “You got first, and last, rounds last time, it's my turn tonight - so what do you want?” 

“No way, I'm not lett-” Mindy cut him off, standing in front of his bench with her arms crossed so as not to let him out from where he was trying to shuffle from.

“I'm buying.” She said, unrelenting as she looked down on him. “So what do you want?” She asked, sounding out each word carefully so it sounded more like a threat than an offer, but her raised brow and soft smirk had Mark shrinking back to the bench, defeated. 

“Whatever’s bottled.” 

“Alright, I'll be back with whatever’s bottled.” Turning on her heels, she headed straight to the bar to recover from staring him down. Fuck those blue eyes, she thought in a moment of pure frustration, as Mark shouted from behind her to claim the next round. 

For looking like such a mess from the outside, the inside of the bar had something of a rustic feel. Or maybe she just enjoyed the way her heels clicked off the wooden floor that matched the bar. The tender was polite enough and despite a lack of buzz, the worn leather booths brought in a specific American sports bar with-better-days-behind-it type of coziness. It was dull with the low powered neon lights not doing much in the way of lighting anything up, but Mindy supposed it was only to her benefit if kept any rogue blushes hidden. 

She made her way back with three bottles of Corona, expertly hooked between her fingers and a soft drink in her other hand to keep her legal. 

“Your maths is definitely getting worse, you said you’d get the _first_ round, this is two.” Mark said with a sigh. “You’re pushing me further into the red here, Mindy.” 

Mindy said nothing, just rolled her eyes as she pushed two bottles towards him, keeping one and the glass to herself. She was to tempted to brush his comment off again, tell him he owed her nothing, but invalidating that now seemed to feel like a disservice, even though she never wanted him to feel indebted to her. 

“Y’know, if someone pap’s my cat because of what you did, I’m telling the world about your shitty hat.” Mindy said with a smirk, trying to ease her way into talking about the press conference like she had been wanting to all day, but a distinct uneasiness came over Mark. “I’m not angry, or annoyed or anything, it was…” She trailed off, not thinking of any way to describe it that wasn’t ‘cute’ or ‘nice’, but failing, she moved on. “Why did you do it?” 

Mark shrugged, lifting the bottle to his lips with a grin and a small laugh. “You told me to.” 

“No, I definitely _didn’t_ , you were only supposed to say that if I won the time bet, but I lost, that’s not on me.” Mindy said, her gaze on the table as she shook her head, hoping a few small sips of the beer in front of her would give her some courage to look up again.

“Alright, I’ll take that since you conceded that I won that round.” 

“I don’t think that was ever up for debate,” Mindy said, raising her eyes as she thought back to when it happened. “Considering, at half four in the morning, you sent me several texts with your location to make sure I knew you’d won.” Mindy raised a brow and Mark raised a hand over his forehead in shame. 

“Yeah, I did that, didn’t I.” He chuckled, lifting his hand from his eyes. “I mean I’m not really that competitive-” Mindy’s bland look of complete disbelief cut him off before he followed the finger she had raised to point at the game on the tv they were meant to be watching. “What? I’m not, not really- oh… well, just because we’re beating you by three so far doesn’t mean I’m going to be insufferable when we win.” 

“You are probably one of the most competitive people I’ve ever known.” Mindy said as a matter of fact even though ‘competitor’ was playing as a synonym for ‘survivor’. “But being competitive doesn’t explain why you dragged my cat into this.” She finished coyly.

“Well, it was Avocado or Egg, and that asshole doesn’t deserve the paparazzi.” 

“Egg.” Mindy echoed. “Why _Egg_?” 

“I told you why, ‘cause I don’t know any other cats, it goes with avocado - the food - and it smells bad, all in I thought it was pretty clever.” Mark shrugged again, watching Mindy like he hadn’t made a fuss about seeing the game at all. “That and the Avocado thing… I thought you’d like it.” 

Clenching her jaw to stop herself from grinning she tilted her head instead, clutching the bottle in both hands in front of her. “I did, and I’m sure Avie will too - he’s more famous than all my friends put together, and he doesn’t even know about it.” 

Mark balked, gesturing to himself. “What about me?” 

Mindy stuttered before apologising. “Sometimes I forget.” 

“You forget?” 

“Well, it’s not like there’s photographers in here following you about, or in NASA - outside press conferences, I mean - and any time I’ve seen you it’s been safe, I just forget there’s real people after you.” She took another sip of her beer before squinting and elaborating more. “Well, I know it sucks, and you get followed, and I hate it, but it only happens when I’m not with you-”

“So you’re saying you stop the presses?” Mark said plainly with a raised brow and Mindy nudged him under the table in denial. 

“Not like that, I mean, I forget it happens constantly.” She left a space to breathe while her tone dipped a little. “I forget you don’t get a break from it.” 

“That’s why I have fun with it while I can, ‘cause it’s not always ridiculous photoshoots and classy magazine interviews.” Mark raised his brow, swirling his bottle in his hand while Mindy became acutely aware of his leg resting against hers. 

“I didn’t know you’d been doing interviews and shoots?” She asked, glad again for the dim lighting with the weight of him against her under the table. 

“Oh, I’m not, are you kidding? The crew would have me - Martinez is already onto me after this morning’s Versace fiasco-” 

“Armani.” 

“Whatever, I’d look like an asshole in either, and Rick isn’t letting me forget it any time soon.” Mindy shook her head at Mark’s self-depreciation, but she didn’t quite manage to articulate how much she disagreed before Mark was complaining at the game. “Oh, come _on_ -” 

In retaliation for the Cubs being struck out, he reached over to flip Mindy’s cap off her head in sarcastic disgust, while she watched him passively. “You were right, you’re not competitive at all, are you?” She shook her hatless head at him, ran a hand through her hair and reached for the cap from behind her back. “Just, such a team player.” She said, smirking and unzipping her bag. When she stuffed the cap back in front of all her folders and papers, her hand brushed against her phone that was buzzing wildly and flashing while someone was calling her. She didn’t want to bring her phone onto the table since the last thing Mark would need was another phone, but she pressed the home button after she missed the call to find a series of calls and texts built it. Her first reaction was to roll her eyes, assuming they were all about that morning, but under each separate notification for the seventeen calls and thirty two texts was the same name; Claire.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> okay well i'm going to have to start off with an apology.   
> sorry for 1) taking so long 2) writing so much 3) writing so much more bc the next chapter is just as long if not longer and i know when i apologise for long chapters everyone is like !! we like long chapters!! which is great but i still feel bad for making you guys read so much omg.   
> what else   
> yeah sorry for taking so long to post this bc i have been sitting on it for days but i've been struggling to cut it off? cause.... i dont want to spoil anything (if my stupid fic is worthy of even having "spoilers") but this one night goes on for a while (NO ONE RAISE ANY HOPES), so technically the next chapter is still this chapter but i didnt want to make you guys read an 11k chapter. which is where its at right now. 11.5k and i'm not finished. fuck i'm nowhere near finished ahahaaaaaaaa   
> anyways  
> i might try and post the next part tonight but no promises bc i told someone just the other day i was gonna post this chapter on friday or saturday and now its sunday and i'm like ????? sorry!!!!!! so definitely no promises but I think i'm gonna have to cut it off eventually cause i refuuuuuuse to post a 6k chapter, thats way too much and right now the next bit is 5.9 so ... i need to learn how to stfu.   
> if anyone needs evidence of me not being able to stfu just refer back to this entire note?????????   
> jesus ccccchrist.   
> okay, i hope you all enjoy, please let me know your thoughts as always ♡
> 
> p.s apology 4) sorry for the next chapter but i've been planning this specific "plot disaster" for.... since i started tbh.


	23. Chapter 23

Unlocking her phone as her brow creased, it took her to the text thread which was screeds of her own name in block capitals telling her to pick up her phone. 

“I gotta - my neighbour’s been calling me.” Was all she said as she lifted her phone to her ear, calling Claire back. “Claire-” There was a rush of swearing and ‘oh my god’s’ on the other end of the phone at a speed Mindy couldn’t keep up with. “Claire, what’s wrong-” Mindy hadn’t noticed how her heart had sped up or how her breathing was almost laboured but hearing that Claire was outside the out of hours veterinary hospital after an ‘accident’ had her stomach dropping. “What- I don’t” 

“ _Mindy_ , I am _so_ sorry, when I opened your door he fled right out and he’s never done it before I wasn’t even expecting it and then he bolted down the stairs at the end of the landing and got onto the street - it was _rush hour_ and you know there’s barely any sidewalk - and a car - they’re in surgery.” 

“Well how bad is it?” Mindy, her urgent voice caught in her throat, had already started to shake. 

“I-I don’t know, I mean… there was blood, Mindy, and they won’t tell me anything! I just - please get here.” 

Mindy hung up after that, throwing her phone back in bag and gathering the strap over her shoulder, her hands struggling in the shock. “Mark, I have to go- I have to go right now-" 

“Mindy what’s wrong?” Mark reached out across the table but Mindy was already pushing herself out the bench. “Mindy-” 

“I don’t know - I think Avie’s hurt, I gotta go, you gotta come with me I don’t have time to drop you somewhere.” She rubbed at her blurry eyes, not really caring that crying and running out of an old dive bar wasn’t an impressive look in front of Mark who followed swiftly behind her. 

“Hey, wait, what do you mean ‘hurt’- is he okay? are _you_ okay?” Mark followed her out, flipping a quick hand up in thanks at a driver who had to stop as they barrelled out across the street. Mindy hadn’t noticed as she ran, swearing at each step, and trying to find her car key while shaking with aimless adrenaline all at once. 

“Look, I don’t know, okay? Claire just said she was at the vet hospital place and I just I need to go-” With one hand swiping at her eyes and the other trying beep open her car with shaky fingers, Mark stepped towards her. 

“Mindy you can’t drive like this-”

“Then how the _fuck_ else am I getting there?!” A new wave of tears spilled over and her hands went to her forehead; she didn’t mean to shout at Mark. “I’m sorry, I don’t have time-” 

“Mindy, give me your keys.” His hand was out expectantly.

“You don’t have your license, don’t be stupid, if you get caught-” She continued to fumble with her keys, the shock in her fingers not quite giving her the strength to stop crying and just _beep the fucking button_. 

“If I get caught, who’s gonna stop me? They’ll end up giving us a fucking police escort if they pull me over, so just give me your keys and get in shotgun.” Mindy nodded, trying to convince herself it was a good idea since Mark sounded so sure before she sniffed and handed her keys over, jogging round to the other side of the car. “Alright, where am I going?” Mark had already started the car and had driven them out the street.

“Just take the 225 to get on the 610 north - please… sorry - I’m so sorry-” In the rush to get in the car she hadn’t thought about the burden she was putting on Mark. “I can’t believe I’m making you do this, Venkat is gonna kill me if he finds out you’re driving - that psychologist - I’m _sorry_ \- maybe I should drive-” 

“Mindy, you’re crying, you’re shaking, you’re freaking out, we’d all be in the hospital if you were driving.” 

“You’re right, I’m sorry-” 

“Will you stop apologising, it’s fine, it’s alright, we’ll be fine, I’ll get you there.” 

“I’m gonna call my mom, if you need directions just ask.” Mindy reached for her phone again but as she bent over to get her bag out the footwell, she couldn’t stifle her sob and it came out in a cough as she rested her head in her hands. Her sudden grief was misdirected in an attempt to distance herself from the current disaster and instead of sobbing openly over Avocado, she couldn’t stop apologising. “I’m sorry, Mark, you must be so sick of chaos by now, I can’t believe I’m dragging you into this.” 

“Mindy, what did I just say? It’s _fine_ , it’s not like you planned it - just call your mom, okay?” Mindy nodded in reply, comforted by the warm hand on her shoulder while she dried her eyes on her sleeve. 

“Mom?” Glad she picked up on the first call, Mindy burst into streams of tears when her mum said hello. “Avocado got hurt and I wasn’t there.” She pressed herself against the window, her free hand hiding her eyes.

“What do you mean, honey? Is he alright?” Her mom asked, the signal a little out, but manageable.

“I don’t know, Claire called me from the animal hospital in Woodlands, I’m going right now.” Her sleeve had been grasped in her hands and was being used as a makeshift tissue throughout the call. 

“Mindy! What did I tell you about using your phone and driving, I know you’re upset but-” 

“I’m not driving, Mark is, I just wanted to tell you about Avie.” Mindy said, her voice wavering again as her hand went to cover her eyes to cover fresh tears. “What if it’s really bad?” 

Her question was less than a whisper as she choked on a sob, but while her mom gently quelled her with hushes, Mark reached over and slid his hand into the one she had at her head, holding it down firmly in his by her side. 

“He’ll be alright, Mindy.” Mark assured with no hint of uncertainty. She was too worried and preoccupied to do anything but accept his word and the squeeze from his hand.

“I’m glad he’s with you, Mindy.” Her mom said from down the phone. “You’ll be okay with him, and Avie will be fine, too, it’ll just be a scratch.” 

“They’re in _surgery_ , mom.” Mindy emphasised with a sniff. 

“And so would you be if you got a deep scratch, he’ll be fine.” 

“Mindy, what exit?” Mark asked quietly with another brief squeeze of her fingers to get her attention.

“Seventeen-B.” 

“Oh, Mindy, he doesn’t even know where he’s going - go talk to him - Avocado will be _fine_ , if they’re in surgery it means he’s alive and worth saving, okay?” Mindy nodded, her voice stuck behind the lump in her throat as her eyes closed against the tears. Her mom asked after her, repeating her name, wanting confirmation she was okay, but Mindy couldn’t answer. She felt Mark untangle his hand from hers and gently take the phone from her other hand, which she then used to mop up her streaked face.

“Hi, Mrs Park, this is Mark Watney, Mindy’s a bit upset right now, but I promise I’ll look after her.” Mark said, still managing to drive, pay attention and save her from bursting into an open sob - something she was sure would happen if she opened her pursed lips now. “I’ll make sure they’re both fine, you got it.” Mark stopped talking to listen, making noises of agreement every now and then. “Yeah, no way, she’s not driving back either, I knew that already.” 

Mindy wiped her eyes again against her sleeve, trying to convince herself to breathe more evenly rather than holding it in in a failed attempt to keep her from crying. 

“Well, it was sort of an inside joke, I guess, but I think Avocado _is_ a great name for a cat, Mrs Park, and I’m gonna tell him that when I see him.” Mark laughed a little at something her mom had said while Mindy found a pace of breath to stick to. “Oh, soon, Mindy said it was in The Woodlands, so we’ll be there in about twenty minutes - yes, I’ve got her, don’t worry- yes, okay, see you, Mrs Park - Helen, sorry- okay, bye-” 

“Sorry.” Mindy whispered, trying to force a smile through her watering eyes. 

“It’s fine, your mom sounds nice, I think she likes me.” Mark grinned and passed Mindy back her phone who managed a small burst of laughter. 

“She does.” Mindy nodded, assured that her mom was already a fan of Mark and probably would be unashamedly adopting him by the end of the night. “She has for years, ever since I was on Watney Watch, she was behind you.” 

Mindy raised her hands in front of her, looking at her ratty, damp sleeves. “What a mess.” She said, assessing the damage of her sleeves left her no hope for the state of her face. “It’s weird how things come around; usually when I was crying with you beside me, you were on a screen doing something incredible and stupid, not driving my car.” She swiped at her eyes again, wondering if it was the shock that had her playing transparent.

“How’d you mean?” Mark glanced at her before putting his eyes back on the road. 

“Mark, I was the only one watching you the whole time, I saw everything, every rock you moved, every tyre track from the rover - and when you flipped it.” Mindy shook her head, putting a hand against her forehead. “I almost didn’t go back to work the next morning since I looked a lot like this during the night.” She gestured to her sleeves by pushing them out in front of her before flipping her fingers up towards her red eyes. 

“When I saw you the first time, I cried that night ‘cause you were alone and going to die up there, then when I actually saw _you_ walking about, I cried again ‘cause you really _were_ up there alone, it wasn’t just _evidence_ of you.” Mindy swallowed, finding it easy to talk about all this she had kept to herself while she was upset about Avocado. “When you started leaving me messages I just hated not being able to talk to you back, I felt so useless to you - you were reaching out to me and I could only report on it and let everyone reach back.” She raised her hands to slap them hopelessly off her legs, gesturing at what she saw as idleness. “The storms came and all the other issues, the HAB being blown in - that fucking tent you made on the side of the rover freaked me out so much, Mark, I could’ve killed you myself for making me think of you sleeping in that.” She sighed as she thought about it; the big canvas that looked like it could’ve burst at any second had made her stress so much she had a growing collection of stress balls and chamomile tea bags stashed in her deskside drawers. “When the supply mission went to shit, I cried at my desk, when you flipped the rover, I cried in front of Venkat and Annie.” 

“Mindy-” 

“When that rover flipped, I thought you’d died - again, for the fourth or tenth time or whatever.” Mindy didn’t raise her eyes to look at him, just kept her red eyes on the passing traffic. “All that effort, work and hope all gone and there was absolutely jack _shit_ I could do, except watch.” She shrugged before she continued. “And then, when you left me that message to say you were okay, I cried again because _of course_ you were still alive, you’re Mark Watney, you wouldn’t die in a flipped rover, that was stupid.” 

“Then,” She started again. Realistically, she would never get through the whole list of all the times he made her cry since she would never be able to remember them all, but the main moments in his rush to the AresIV MAV were the easiest to remember, if not also the most brutal. “When I found out you were stripping out the MAV to save weight and I thought of you doing that after everything you’d been through, I just… you were too far away and all I could do was _watch_.” Mindy paused, closing her eyes against her vision clouding; she didn’t want to keep crying, but this evening was not going as planned. “And now it’s just the same, my cat got hurt and I can’t do anything.” 

“You will, we’ll be there soon, okay?” Mark reached over and took her hand again like before and this time she squeezed his hand back with a nod of her head. 

“When Lewis got you, though, Venkat cried - I mean, I cried too, but that’s probably obvious by now.” Mindy glanced over with a smirk, but Mark just remained bewildered by what she was saying. “Then, all the reports from the Hermes, about you being malnourished and underweight and-”

“Totally gross.” Mark chipped in as if he felt the need to add humor, but his tone was disconnected. 

“ _Not how you were_ \- came through, which was sad news, but we were still so happy to have you back and they could fix that, you’d be okay - you had Doctor Beck with you… and when you were in the pod to come down to Earth, I was shaking the whole time - ‘course, I cried that whole night when you made it back, really I cried on and off about three weeks if I’m honest.” Mindy’s gaze dropped to their hands by her side. How long had it really been since he was leaving morse code rocks on the Martian deserts? Lifting and laying huge solar panels, farming potatoes to _live_ , and now he was holding her hand to comfort her. He made it all the way to Mars and back to end up in her car, holding her hand on the way to see her hurt cat.

“But, I felt guilty.” 

“ _Guilty_?” Mark asked, stunned. 

“Well, what use was crying? You were the one living it, you were struggling, pushing every day, surviving on fucking _Mars_ , and _I_ was crying?” She shook her head, ridiculing herself. “Mark, you keep saying I saved you but what did I do? I watched while you struggled - you lifted boulders to leave me messages, you wrote me morse code in fucking rocks with your own hands - you tipped a rover and lived, you _blew yourself up_ in the HAB and lived, you did all that and I just watched it happen, you don’t owe me anything, can’t you see that?” 

“Mindy-” Mark started, his tone more stern than before, but she cut him off again.

“And don’t say ‘no one else would’ve seen me’ because, if I hadn’t been there, someone else would’ve and you’d be in someone else’s car, holding their hand on the way to their cat.” 

“ _Mindy_ ” Mark tried again and Mindy said nothing in return, feeling like she covered everything she had to. “Mindy, maybe someone else would’ve seen me, but you should understand the importance of the right angles at the right times - if you hadn’t seen me when you did, I might’ve never got off that planet.” Mark’s conversational gesturing was too much a habit to be left, even while holding her hand. He lifted her hand in his to point in her vague direction. “You have to listen to me, Mindy, if you hadn’t seen me when you did, I would’ve fucking died - doesn’t matter that I hacked the rover and got the MAV or survived on potatoes, none of that would’ve even mattered if you hadn’t seen me.” Mindy looked up at him and she wasn’t sure she’d ever seen quite a desperately honest expression in all her life. “Holy shit, Mindy, please, you saw me first and that is so important - to me and in general, you need to understand I can’t let that go, if it wasn’t for you I’d still be up there.” 

Mindy wasn’t sure what to say to something that felt so brutal, so she watched his eyes dart from her to the road and back again. “I’d be dead without you - you don’t know what it was like, I was dying, Mindy - people can’t live on potatoes, they just can’t, okay? Potatoes, vicodin and vitamins aren’t a diet, I was fucked.” 

“I’m sorry, Mark, it’s hard to think I was any use to you when-”

“You were sitting at a desk, I know, but you were _everything_ to me - I wouldn’t have made it to Sol nine hundred and whatever, there was no way in hell that would’ve happened… but it didn’t need to, ‘cause you got me - everything that happened, from setting up the supply mission, to hacking the rover and getting all that shit out the MAV and getting back on the Hermes was ‘cause of you, Mindy.” She dabbed at her eyes again while Mark changed lanes, thinking on what he was saying. “Everyone else, Bruce and Rich - _China_ \- were just consequences of _you_.

“Okay.” She muttered, “Then, I’m glad I could help you.” 

“No, you didn’t _help_ me, you _saved_ me, it was you that got me off that fucking planet, do you understand? Yes, you were in the right place at the right time, but fuck am I glad you were.” He squeezed her hand again, a little harder than before and she returned it, maybe not in full understanding, but with more insight than she had had before. “And I don’t think anyone else would’ve given enough of a shit to learn fucking morse code with me and stick around so much to manage all those shifts by yourself, only sleeping when I was, I think what you did for me is insane - especially the morse code bit.”

“It wasn’t that difficult.” Mindy admitted quietly. 

“It was a dick, okay? I know it was, so, driving you to get Avocado isn’t a burden, it’s a privilege - and stop apologising or I’m calling your mom and I think she’ll ground you if I ask her to.” 

“Never thought it’d end up you and my mom working against me.” A soft smile touched her lips as she sniffed. “You’ll have Avie on your side soon enough as well, well, if he.. If he-” Her free hand went to cover her mouth, stopping herself from saying the last word as she tried not to think there was a high possibility she might not have a cat by the time they got there. 

“We’ll be there soon, we’re coming off at this bit right? Then it’s only a few minutes into Woodlands - look, see? Sign for the hospital.” Mark pointed with both their hands. “He’ll be okay, mindy, I promise.” 

“Yeah, he’ll be okay.” She nodded, trying to convince herself and sound as sure as Mark did, but there was still a part of her that worried for the worst. “Have you had any pets before?” Mindy asked, distracting herself. 

“We had a dog when I was growing up, big golden retriever called Chance- he bit it just after I left college, just from old age, though.” Mark started to laugh, obviously thinking about his dog. “We lost him for six days one time, holy shit I was fucking wrecked over it ‘cause I thought it was my fault since I named him Chance - y’know, after the dog in the movie? And the pets get lost in the film so I was like ‘it’s my fault, it’s my fault he’s gone’, my parents had no idea what to do-” Mark stopped to laugh again, giving Mindy some hope for the so far depressing story. “Anyways, six days this goes on for and I’m even off school ‘cause I’m out looking for Chance and it turns out he’s just chillin’” Mark shrugged, grinning at the memory. “Just chillin’ in my neighbor's house a few doors down without his collar on having the time of his life, eating all their food and getting scratched all day.” 

“How did your neighbours not know he was your dog?” 

“They were old, I mean, they’d basically adopted him, started calling him Betsy, and trust me, Chance was a dude, alright, he had _a lot_ of girlfriends - definitely more than I ever had - and walks to the park were basically Chance meeting his dates.” 

Mindy smiled, leeching some of Mark’s mood for her own. “So you’re a dog person, then?” 

“Eh, I prefer them but I wouldn’t say I was exclusive - Avocado has his chance to win me over, s’all I’m saying.” 

“You will be, by the end of the night - a cat person I mean, or at least you’ll love Avie - he’s so cute, he’s white and grey, and his eyes are _so_ green.” It hit her as she was talking, she wasn’t sure if the present tense was the right one to be using and to hide the hesitation in her voice, she chuckled. “He’s such a stoner.” 

“What?” Mark asked incredulously as Mindy laughed.

“He’s such a stoner, catnip really gets to him.” Mindy laughed again, remembering the christmases and birthdays with Avocado going wide eyed and all limbs across her floor. “He’s lucky I can’t grow anything or he’d be high all the time.” 

“I can’t believe your cat’s a tweaker.” Mark said, his grin shining through, “I love him already, that’s hilarious.” 

“Yeah, I told you you would.” She trailed off as they rounded a corner to finally see the building at the end of the block, the neon sign hanging over the road looked threatening with the thunderingly blunt title of the emergency animal hospital written across it. Mark’s agreeableness, ability to keep her calm and distract her had been effortless to the point where she had hardly noticed her eyes drying, but drawing closer had her breathing hitching again. When they made a left into the lot, Mindy spotted Claire pacing outside and Mark told her to go while he parked.

“Claire-” Mindy called as she fell out the car, dragging her bag behind her. “How is he?” 

“Mindy! Thank _God_ , I don’t even know, they haven’t told me anything else and they said the nurses at the desk will let me know as soon as they do ‘cause I keep asking them so much.” 

“Well, what happened?” Mindy asked, still not all too clear on the details. 

“He just-” Claire gestured hopelessly as she spoke about it, her palms upwards and fingers stretched as if Avocado had fallen through her fingers. “He bolted, Mindy, straight out the door, and you know he never does that, and I think he chased someone down the stairs - it was like he saw something and just wanted it -” 

“And then?” Mindy pressed for details. 

“I went after him, but by the time I was down the stairs he was out the door - stupid automatic thing just opened when he got there and he was out the front and on the road - the car swerved but it got him and I just - I phoned you and I phoned here and they said to bring him in right away so I did and they just rushed him over there.” Claire pointed into the building beyond the desk at the front where Mindy started heading and Claire jogged to keep up. “Mindy I don’t mean to worry you but there was blood, y’know, and he was crying - I couldn’t do anything, I’m sorry, I’m so sorry Mindy-” 

As mindy approached the desk, she turned to Claire first, “Claire, I don’t blame you and I’m not angry at you, it’s not your fault he ran ‘cause you’re right, he doesn’t do that, it’s alright - he was just stupid, I don’t know-” Mindy turned to the desk, bringing her purse out of her bag and handing over her credit card for whatever the bill was going to be. “I’m here for Avocado Park, he was brought in earlier - do you have any news?” 

The nurse, dressed in purple scrubs took her card but shook her head. “Like we said, we’ll let you know when we do-”

“Okay, but is he in surgery still, is he out, is he _alive_?” Blunt irritation setting in with the lack of details about Avocado’s current state. 

“Oh, he’s alive as far as I know, Miss Park, and they’re still in surgery - you see this light?” The veterinary nurse pointed to a yellow light up on the wall down the hall. “It means the vets are operating and the room is sterile, so we can’t go in, when that light goes off, you’ll know soon after that, alright?” 

“How long until it goes off?” 

“It’s gonna take as long as it takes, Miss Park, all I can tell you is to take a seat and I’ll let you know when I do.” The nurse’s words were practiced, she obviously dealt with this a lot, but Mindy didn’t and her hands were over her forehead again in the stress of the moment before a comforting hand ran down her back. 

“You okay?” Mark asked, handing Mindy her keys. 

“Yeah, we just gotta wait now.” Mindy said, taking her keys and credit card and moving to the plastic chairs with a few other stressed out pet owners. 

“Mindy, I’m so sorry-” Claire said again, but her eyes were flicking towards Mark. “I’ll pay the bill or half or anything, he got out ‘cause of me-” 

“Claire, it’s fine, and if you want to go, you can, I’ll let you know what’s happening as soon as I do.” Mindy offered, not picking up on Claire’s hope to be introduced to Mark, despite the time and place. “Look, I’ll walk you to your car,” She dumped her bag on a chair she never got to sit on and turned to Mark who she was getting too used to just _being_ there. “Do you mind? I won’t be long.” Mark shook his head and half waved to Claire who gave him a pursed smile back. 

When they got past the automatic doors, Mindy hooked her arm around Claire’s. They had been neighbours longer than Mindy had Avocado and they had been friend’s too, but with Mindy’s long hours, they weren’t the type of friends to hang out or go out, but it didn’t pose any harm to their relationship. “Claire, I promise I don’t blame you.” 

Claire nodded, drying her eyes on her sleeve like Mindy had been. “I just feel so bad - he _never_ runs like that out your door - I wasn’t expecting it.” 

“I know, really, it’s okay, I’ll let you know what happens.” Mindy said again, trying not to let herself get upset again watching Claire mop her tears. 

“Just, doesn’t matter the time, I don’t care if it’s four in the morning - you call me, okay?” claire brought her car key out her pocket and turned to give Mindy a hug. “Seems like Avocado just wanted your attention back.” Claire raised a brow when they separated and Mindy rolled her eyes.

“I’ll call you.” Mindy assured, ignoring any insinuation as Claire ducked into her car. Mindy waved her off before turning back inside, pulling her cardigan across herself out of comfort rather than for any warmth. When she stepped back in, her eyes went to the light the nurse had pointed to to find it still luminous yellow and flickering against the white walls. With a sigh, she sat back beside Mark who was lovingly scratching an alsatian’s ears and chatting to the owner. 

“So, Bailey here, decided to eat the welcome mat - carpet, rubber, labels, the lot.” The owner said, shaking his head. “We’re waiting for scans and x-rays - apparently rubber doesn’t show on x-rays, so they need to guess what’s happening for part of it.” 

“Bailey,” Mark chastised, still rubbing her behind her ears, “Was it tasty? Was that it?” 

“Is your dog in, too?” The owner asked the both of them and Mark shook his head. 

“No, Mindy’s cat got hit by a car so we’re waiting on him getting out of surgery.” When Mark had looked up to answer, Bailey had shifted under him, looking for more attention and somehow Mindy felt she could sympathise. “That’s right, Bailey, we’re waiting on Avocado, we are-” 

“Avocado? Like the conf-” 

“Bailey Wilson?” A vet called, cutting off the owner’s journey of discovery while Mindy elbowed Mark gently in the ribs. 

“Well, what’s he gonna do?” Mark asked, obviously catching the meaning in Mindy’s dig. “Call the press? I think this is probably the safest place for me to be tonight - me and Avie.” 

“Yeah, I guess.” Mindy mused as she flicked her gaze towards the light. “Unless something goes wrong.” 

Mark wound his hand into hers again, lacing his fingers through hers. “Hey,” He nudged her knee with his to get her to look round at him, and with a purse of her lips, she did, cursing out those blue eyes all over again. “He’ll be fine, alright? Cat’s have nine lives, and this isn’t even gonna cost him a life, he’ll be back home and stoned to all hell by the morning.” 

Over the next forty minutes, Mindy caught herself crying twice, each time was followed by Mark loosening his grip on her hand only to put his arm over her shoulder. The first time he did it, it made her cry more, feeling so guilty over dragging him here, over having him come all this way to have to comfort her over a cat - as well as her uncertainty over Avocado in the first place. The second time worked as a comforter, she dried her eyes and sat up a bit, determined not to keep on losing it, even if being pressed up against Mark wasn’t exactly a bad thing. When the yellow light above the surgery door went out, Mindy was on her feet, dragging Mark by the hand behind her. 

“The light’s off, can I see him?” Mindy called over the desk to any of the nurses working in the back. The same one from earlier made their way over after their eyes flicked to the light, confirming what Mindy had said.

“Look, Miss Park - right? Miss Park, until the vets come _out_ the room, we still don’t know anything-” 

“But you sa-” Mindy started as a door to her right clicked open. 

“Avocado Park?” A women, still in scrubs and drying her hands with a paper towel, cocked her head towards the room she just came out of when Mindy caught her eye. “This way, please.” 

Mindy followed in after the vet too quickly to keep Mark in her hand, but he was right at her back the whole way. When she turned into the bright room, her eyes scanned it for Avocado, but found nothing. 

“Is he alright? Where is he? Is he-”

“He’s _fine_ , Miss Park, he’s in the back sleeping off the anaesthetic - he went through quite the ordeal.” The vet stopped on the other side of an examination table, her fingers hitting off the keyboard to a well used and mostly archaic computer. “I’ll assume you know he got hit by a car? He was quick enough for only his right back leg to be hit, but there was some damage.” 

Mindy’s hand went to cover her mouth as her breathing hitched in her throat.

“He’ll be fine, we didn’t have to do anything other than piece him together again - it was a clean break, but it was a clean break in a couple of places -” The vet posted up two x-rays onto a light board beside them and Mindy’s eyes started to water. “Mr Watney, could you hit the lights.” Neither the vet, Mark nor Mindy balked at the use of Mark’s name, just let her continue explaining Avocado’s injuries. 

“His femur and fibula both had a break in them, the break from the fibula puncture the skin, which is why we had to operate for so long, making sure the break hadn’t punctured anything else from the inside out - Mr Watney, the lights.” Mark raised a hand behind him and flicked the lights on again. “For now, he’ll be on pain relief, a three day course of antibiotics and some anti inflammatory medication, as well as his leg being in a cast - I can give you a few days supply of the pain and anti inflammatory medication, but you’ll need to go to your local vets for any more.”

“When can I take him home?” 

“Tonight, but I want to make sure he wakes up okay from the anesthetic - you’ll have a two hour wait for that, I’m afraid.” 

Mindy lowered her eyes for a moment, her fingers trailing against her lips. “Was he bad? When he came in?” 

“It was a bad hit, but no, he was not the worst I’ve seen - he might end up with some early onset arthritis but not until he’s at least ten, he’s still young, so he might even stave that off for another year or two.” Mindy managed a small smile at that, hearing that her cat would still be making it to old age quelled some of the worry in her heart. “In the meantime, however, you _and_ Avocado are in for a rough night.” 

The vet reached behind her bringing out a series of boxes of medicine. “Okay, this is your antibiotic,” She pushed a white box with a red label towards Mindy. “Crush these in his food three times a day for three days.” Mindy nodded and put that box in her bag as the vet readied another. “Anti inflammatory - it's liquid so you can pour it over his food twice a day - morning and night.” Mindy nodded again with a quiet ‘okay’, but the growing amount was overwhelming her. “And this, is your pain killer.” The vet drew out a syringe without a needle on the end and a small bottle of creamy liquid to show them. “You're going to have to give him this directly by making him swallow it, squinting ten millilitres on his tongue once every four hours for the next two, maybe three nights.” Mindy nodded once more, taking on the responsibility of no sleep and holding down a poorly cat openly as she reached for the blue box. 

“Anything else? What if he's crying or meowing can I give him more?” 

“Yes, and it's likely he will be, so be prepared for no sleep - Allison at the desk will take your number and call you when he's ready since even when he does wake up, I'll still need to check him over before I can release him.” 

“I can't see him?” Mindy asked, her eyes disappointed.

“Not yet, I'll have him ready for you in two hours or so-” The vet wandered round and opened the door to let them leave while Mindy felt like she had been short changed. She wanted to see Avie and all this waiting about only to hear he was okay and hear he was asleep wasn't enough, she wanted to see him. But with a small urge from Mark at her arm, she left the room and went to leave her number at the desk. 

“There's a lot of places around here to eat or sit rather than in here - across the ‘ways is a mall and people who have to wait go over there a lot.” The nurse said with a shrug. “You can stay here but if you go, it'll take your mind off it.” 

She didn't want her mind taken off it, she wanted to take Avocado home. She didn't want to be giving him painkillers all night because that only meant he was in pain. And the thought of Avocado in pain only made her cry. It was slow at first, her lip wavered as she nodded at what the nurse was saying and Mark at her back was none the wiser. Then, trying to keep the sob in had her lips pursing and her breath caught in her throat. By the time her shoulders were shaking and her hand was reaching for her face, Mark had clocked her and took over the transaction.

“Thanks for the advice, we'll be back when you call.” The nurse gave him a sympathetic smile as he rested a strong hand on one of Mindy’s shoulder and another on her other arm, steering her gently out the building. “C’mon, Mindy, let's get out of here for a bit, we'll get Avie in a couple of hours and he'll be ready to see you then.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i literally jjjjust said that a 6k chapter was ridiculous so here's a 6.2k chapter with an apology!!!!  
> sorry its so long oh my gggggod  
> also yea when i told my friends i was going to off avocado they shouted at me a lot so i toned it down a bit but he was sacrificed in the name of love!!! ish.... not really - almost.  
> anyways.  
> sorry for making you all read 12k today but this is what you signed up for so. it's your own fault really!!
> 
> please let me know if youre angry about avocado taking a hit bc i was promised by my friends an angry mob and i really want my angry mob over a fictional cat. also feel free to let me know if actually enjoyed 12k of mark and mindy being nowhere near as slashy as i want them to be yet tbh.


	24. Chapter 24

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> oh my god.  
> i am so sorry. it has been months and i am sorry. trust me i know. i know. i'm sorry. i'm so sorry.  
> more notes at the end but rn wow am i sorry. sorry. yikes. sorry...

Her sleeves were damp again by the time they got passed the automatic doors, but with a sobering night breeze, she regained a bit of decorum. 

“Hold on a sec.” She said, wiping her eyes one last time before straightening herself out, pulling at her jacket and fixing her bag strap - just taking the time to breathe. “Okay, I’m good, I’m alright.” She assessed, finding the mental strength to stay dry for the next two hours. 

“You sure?” Mark asked who had come to a stop in front of her, his blue eyes trying to assess her at the same time. “We can take a seat-” 

“No, no more sitting about, I’m fine, let’s just go across and waste two hours.” She flapped her hand in the direction of the mall they were advised on while she started walking towards the lot. 

“I parked it over here.” Mark said, pointing to the left. “Expertly reverse parked, might I add, by someone who has been driving in a straight line and parking wherever the hell I wanted to for way too long.”

“Nice job, you should take a picture and give it to the shrink next time as proof.” Mindy suggested as she rounded towards the drivers side. “Or maybe not, I don’t want you in trouble.” She grinned to herself as her hand dipped to her bag for her key, but when Mark’s hand was open expectantly beside her, her brow pulled. “Mark I can manage driving across a junction.” 

“Mindy, your mom told me not to let you dr-” 

“My mom isn’t here, so, I’m keeping my keys, thanks.” 

“Mindy.” Mark warned.

“Mark, I’m fine, alright? I’m okay.” She remained stubborn, raising her brow to cut off the stand off as Mark finally raised his arms, standing down and making his way to shotgun. 

“Don’t tell your mom.” He replied, a small smirk at his lips while Mindy rolled her eyes, shed her bag and got in the driver’s side. 

When she put the key in the ignition, she had a moment of realisation; Mark was still here - and he was only here by accident in the first place. “Mark, we can’t go to the mall, I need to drop you off somewhere - are you staying at a hotel?” 

“What? I’m not leaving you, no way, I’m staying.” 

“Mark, I can’t just kidnap you ‘cause my cat got hurt, isn’t someone looking for you?” 

“Uh, yeah, everyone, but I’d rather they didn’t find me.” 

“You know what I mean.” Mindy replied with an edge in her tone. 

“Why would anyone be looking for me? In case you forgot, I had a press conference this morning on why I can’t get a girlfriend, my friends are scattered, my parents will be expecting a phone call eventually since I’m actually eleven again,” Mark paused, sighing before raising his eyes and shaking his head. His sunny persona was never used as a mask, he was genuinely the brightest person Mindy had ever come across, but she could also tell he was struggling with things he hadn’t touched on, but he was thinking about them. “But that’s it, so, I’m not going anywhere and I’m telling you now, you’re sure as fuck not driving home.” 

Mindy eyed him and opened her mouth to argue, but he cut her off. 

“No fucking way, not only did your mom tell me not to let you, but if Avocado starts meowing or whatever, I don’t think he’s gonna be any happier if I’m trying to shush him and not you.”

She didn’t appreciate being threatened with her own mom, but she hesitantly admitted he had a point about Avocado. 

“You don’t know where I live.” She said curtly, stating it as a fact. 

“You managed to get me to Woodlands, you can get me back to your own apartment.” Mark said with a raised brow, conceding Mindy into defeat. “So, can we go to the mall now?”

Mindy had completely given in by then and drove towards the mall until she saw a sign for Petsmart and decided what she needed to do was blow her wages and guilt on cat treats. Since Mark had won in the debate of who was driving who home, she gave him no choice in the Petsmart decision. It turned out, however, that by the time they had parked again and got out the car, he was just as excited about Petsmart as he had been about the game they were now missing. 

They had only managed to lose half an hour by the time Mindy emptied the shelves in the cat section and Mark ran his fingers along the glass for the fish and rodents to follow. When they left, Mindy heard the cashier whisper to her colleague ‘was that Mark Watney?’ while Mark and she ignored it, not looking back. Mindy was starting to feel a little more stable, or at least she had found a good enough distraction for the meantime - which was half Mark explaining the difference in people who approach him to those who don’t, and half being thankful for Mark's rolled up sleeves as she watched the way the muscles in his forearm tensed when he threw the last bag in the back of her car.

“I mean, when the kids, or even the grown-ups come up to me like ‘you’re Mark, right?’, that’s totally cool, I _love_ that, but when they whisper about it like in there, I don’t want to be like ‘yeah, it’s me’.” Mindy chuckled as she started her car, understanding the awkwardness of assumption. “And then, if I say that it’s me and they’re like ‘oh, we didn’t mean _you_ ’, or ‘oh, we don’t actually like you, we would’ve been fine if you stayed up there’, I mean, I can only take so much embarrassment.” 

Mindy rolled her eyes as Mark glanced at her, searching for reaction to his self-depreciation. 

“No one, and I mean _no one_ , would’ve wanted you to stay up there.” She said with a sigh as she navigated them out of the Petsmart lot and over the cross roads towards the mall. “I mean, it might’ve been my job to pay more attention to a different planet, but I was on the right one to know what I’m talking about here.” 

“So, does that mean I get credit for giving you a job?” Mark said, teasing. 

“Absolutely not.” Mindy replied with a laugh as she turned into a new space. “It might not seem like it but I didn’t actually major in Watney Watch - and I definitely didn’t get my masters in it either.” 

“What did you get it in?” Mark asked.

“What do you mean?” Mindy paused and she turned off the car and assessed him with a squint. “You mean my major? Didn’t I already tell you this?” Her confused smirk turned thoughtful as she tried to remember back to their first night out. “You asked me-” Clarity slipped down her shoulders like ice on her neck as she realised that while Mark did in fact ask about ‘who she was’, she had completely avoided the question.

“Yeah, and you didn’t tell me shit, so, c’mon, I wanna know.” 

“Okay, fine.” Grabbing her bag from the backseat, she locked the car behind her and met up in step with Mark with a shrug. “I majored in computer science, had some psych and astronomy, then a masters in satellite communications, management and navigation.” Mark’s silence was prompting but Mindy didn’t know what else to say. “That’s it.”

“That is _not_ it.” Mark said, refusing to take her answer, so he began interviewing her instead. “What college did you go to?” 

“UCLA.” She answered, catching Mark looking at her like he was trying to decide whether or not to believe her. “I did, don’t look at me like that-”

“I’m not looking at you like anything, I just wouldn’t have expected-”

“Me and the city of LA together, I know, neither could my mom, but they’re good for computer stuff and they have NASA links.” She stopped herself from shrugging by adjusting her bag over her shoulder as they wandered into the mall. “Plus it wasn’t too far away from home.” 

“That’s a good thing?”

“ _Yes_ ,” Mindy insisted. “My mom lives herself so being close enough for flying visits were important.” 

“Then why didn’t you go to Washington State?” Mark asked with a smirk that grew with knowing as Mindy went quiet. “Okay, so, Washington was _too_ close, I get it.” 

“Not too close, just-” 

“Not right?” Mark said, brandishing air quotes leading to a harsh but playful nudge from Mindy. 

“I wanted to work on a tan.” A glance to Mark and a small smirk had her admitting to her lie before she had even finished it while Mark laughed at her side. 

“Did you do your Masters at UCLA, too?” Mark asked before dragging her by the elbow into a Barnes & Noble they were walking past.

“Why are we in here?” Mindy asked in reply, ignoring the question. 

“‘Cause I wanna see that Unofficial Whatever they wrote about me - I thought Martinez was kidding me for four months before someone made me Google it.” Mark was a step ahead, scanning the shelves in front of him before Mindy tapped his arm and pointing over towards the best sellers. “And I wanna know where you did your Masters.” 

He glanced at her from the corner of his eye as she stepped in front of him, leading to the shelf with piles of books on him and his journey - most of them only theorising if he would live or not since after he was back on the Hermes, there wasn’t much to theorise about, and therefore, write about. Still, Mindy pursed her lips and sounded out a quiet sigh in response. She hadn’t quite found a way to divulge the fact that she studied in Urbana-Champaign, Illinois for a year yet, so now that it had come up she was definitely feeling like she was in a corner. 

“Illinois.” She said eventually with a small nod of her head. It had felt dishonest not to have mentioned it before, it felt like she had been keeping it from him, especially when his eyes looked up from the blurb of the nearest book with his own face on it in shock at her. 

“Illinois?” He repeated, a brow raised. “Well, you’re gonna have to be more specific now, and if you say Chicago and you never mentioned this before-” 

“Urbana.” 

“Urbana-Champaign? That’s only three hours from Chicago!” Mark said, as if it meant something.

“I know, but you were already an astronaut, so-” Mindy replied, dismissing any link.

“So? That’s close, Mindy.” Gesturing with his hands, one still stuck in a book, her only response was to gesture helplessly back. 

“You weren’t there when I was.” 

“I _lived_ there, I was still living in Chicago when you would’ve been doing your Masters.” 

“Well, even if I’d seen you, I’d never have known you.” 

“It’s just weird to think you were only three hours away before I knew you, like, that close and then _that_ far that’s all.” 

“And now, here, watching you read books about yourself.” She said with a small smile as her gaze dropped to the “Recent Space Exploration Collection” sign above the table. 

“Yeah, it’s kinda weird.” He admitted and put down the one he was holding. “I thought I’d want to read it, but I think I’ll give it a miss.” 

“Are you sure? I mean, you’re missing out on the publication of your yearbook photo.” Mindy said quietly as she worked to hide her grin behind the book she lifted, showing Mark the inside the last page there was his senior year picture in full colour, half page, staring out. “Nice hair, but, how did you get stuck in the eighties in twenty-twelve?” 

“Shut up.” Mark said with a grin, taking the book out of Mindy’s hands and dumping it back on the pile. “I can’t believe they printed that.” 

“They printed worse.” 

“Like what?” Mark asked, a sudden alarm in his tone but Mindy wasn’t phased and answered with a small noise of distaste. 

“Well, a lot of ‘ex’s’ were interviewed, a lot of ‘friends’, then one got your birthday wrong, said you grew up in Evanston, said you had a particular liking for underground raves and that your favourite animals were badgers.” 

“Okay, I know you know where I grew up since I electronically took you there, and my birthday is common knowledge - although maybe not to that guy - but, firstly, what makes you think underground raves and badgers are not my thing?” Mark asked, rhyming his questions off on a raised finger before raising a second. “Secondly, if you know this about me why do I not know this about you?” 

Mindy turned on her heels as she wandered further into the shop, Mark a step behind again. “I spent most of my time reading your files when you were gone, like I told you before, so I knew you were born on October twelfth and you grew up in Bartlett before you _electronically took me_.” After two years studying his files to try and understand where he would go next, reciting things as plain as his birthday and hometown was simple, even if it was a bit odd to reveal it like this. “As for raves and badgers, I mean, I have no idea about the music, but I feel like animals who typically ruin gardens wouldn’t be a favourite.” She finished with a squint as she thought about it. “Plus you said you were a dog person, so I’m going with dogs.”

Mark took a moment, watching her intently to the point where her gaze found her feet as the heat rose to her cheeks, before asking more questions with the first taking Mindy off guard. “Why didn’t you get into MIT?”

“I didn’t apply.” She said automatically, but Mark tilted his head, scepticism growing in his blue eyes,and she tried again. “I didn’t have the grades.” She stuttered, but he called her bluff. 

“Bullshit, why did you really not get in.”

“Not enough extra-curricular or volunteering hours.” Mindy answered monotonously, as if she had answered that question a thousand times before; which wasn’t true, she had just read the reason for her denial for entry too many times.

“What assholes.” Mark said with a shake of his head while Mindy raised a brow in agreement. “I bet they’d have taken you if they knew about your Mons discovery.” 

“MIT might have a good rep, but they can’t tell the future.”

“Maybe not.” Mark said, his eyes drifting in thought as he followed Mindy into the shop, taking another book with his own name written across the top from her. “How many-” 

“At least seventeen got published.” 

Mark sighed in response and flicked through this one before heading straight to the pictures pages. “And when’s your birthday, then?” Mindy lost her voice but Mark prompted her on. “Fair’s fair, Mindy, it’s not like I got to sit and read all about you.” 

“February eighth, ninety-eight.”

“Ninety-eight? So I’m four years older than you?”

“Three and a bit.” Mindy corrected, handing Mark yet another book with the title _The Man on Mars_. “Left of Olympia, before you ask.” 

“Left of Olympia - Washington?”

“Yep.” She said with a nod as she stopped at another shelf, pulling out _A Guide to the Ares III Mission So Far_ with the crew lineup as the cover. “This is the one they said your dad’s name was Peter. And your mom was Ruth.” 

“Ruth?” 

“Ruth.” Mindy’s head was down as she flicked, her eyes scanning the pages before she found it. “I don’t know your parent’s names but I know their first initials - your mom’s is P and your dad’s is D.” 

“Yeah, Patricia and David.” Mark followed up, a small half grin at his lips. “Or Patsy to her friends and when I’m being a dick,” He said with a shrug. “Y’know, I thought it’d be weird for someone to know everything about me or to know stuff like that but…” Mark trailed off.

“What? It’s _not_ really weird? ‘Cause I think it’s weird and I’m the one spilling it.” Mindy said, shuffling where she stood across the low, book-covered table. “Kinda wish I’d shut up.”

“Nah, I can’t explain it, but, it’s fine.” His gaze lingered a little on her before he turned to book in his hand around for her to see. “Now, tell the truth, is this not the cutest halloween costume for a two year old, ever?” 

“I...what is it?” 

“What do you mean what is it?” Mark said, offended, as he turned the book back to himself for further inspection. “I was a bear, well, a cub - look at my dad-” 

“Oh, I get it, you were a _cub_ and your dad went as a Cubs _fan_.” She laughed at the idea and nodded, agreeing it was cute. “What was your mom?” 

“Tired of my dad parading a very grumpy cub around at ten at night in a room full of drunk adults.” Mark reflected Mindy’s laugh with a grin of his own and dropped the book back to where it came from as Mindy did the same with hers. “Alright so I got, birthday, hometown, college, Masters, mom’s name and...“ 

“Work duties for the past three years, place of work-” 

“That doesn’t count-” 

“Boss?”

“Doesn’t count either.” 

“Then the only other you got is pet’s name.” Mindy’s lips pursed as she said it and subtly checked the time on her phone only to find an hour left to wait before it was alright to head back over. 

“Then, by that logic,” Mark said, bringing her attention away from the worry that was bubbling up by walking her out of the shop with a brief arm over her shoulder.. “A deep love of strange fruit.” 

“I actually don’t really love or hate avocados.” Mindy said as Mark dropped his arm from her shoulder, but kept the closeness. 

“Well I’ll take that off the list then, which I think is still short, but what else do you know about me?” 

“Not that much personal details-wise, I was mostly looking out for your psychometrics and the results from your NASA tests, you know, the ones that say you’re a pragmatist learner and outgoing.” Mindy thought back to all the folders and files and papers that were spread across her desk, units, floor and lap at some points during Mark’s mission. She admittedly never did find them all that helpful. Occasionally they would maybe point in a vague direction, but variables were everything. Yes, Mark was the type of person to solve things systematically and with a hands-on approach, but he also liked to spend valuable energy leaving messages to NASA to call him nicknames he thought were funny.

Mark hummed in thought for a moment, thinking of other things to ask. “First family holiday?” 

“My mom drove us to Newport in Oregon when I was four.” Mindy said as she thought back on the week spent by the beaches and harbours. “It rained the last two days, but it was good from what I remember - which isn’t much.” 

“So, when you say ‘us’, you mean…” 

“Me and my mom.” 

“Right.” Mark nodded in understanding while Mindy smirked, knowing what he was trying to ask.

“I’m not a medical mystery, I did have a dad, but he just didn’t stick around for long.” 

“Asshole- unless-” Mark backpedalled as soon as he said it but it had Mindy laughing. 

“No, no, you’re right, I never knew him and my mom just says she got the best deal out it anyway - me and not him.” Mindy shook her head at her mom’s optimistically sour outlook. “I don’t know him at all.” 

“Well, his loss then.” Mark said, holding her gaze for just a moment longer than Mindy thought innocent. They spent another half hour wandering the mall, stopping only for another ten minutes for a coffee that they regarded as ‘fuel for later’, knowing that Mindy would be up for the rest of the night for Avie. Mark continued with his questions and Mindy started to open up her answers, telling him, in detail, about key points in his rescue, before going back to key points during her life. First pet, first job, first car, it was easy once she got into it, and he watched her intently as Mindy told her stories, but she gave him a dubious look when he asked about her first boyfriend before she went onto a thrilling tale of middle school rivalry to romance in her math class. They continued talking about firsts and Mark was working as such an engaging distraction that when her eyes caught a clock in the back of a shop they were strolling past, she had to look twice. 

“Shit, Mark, we have to go-” 

“Didn’t they say they’d call us? What if he’s not up yet?” 

“I wanna wait on him there - to _be_ there.” The laughter and preoccupation was long gone from her eyes as Mark found himself stepping up his pace and falling in line with her hurry. While Mindy searched through her bag for her car keys, complaining about throwing them in her bag rather than her pocket, Mark was fighting a pull he was sure wasn’t platonic. There was an urge that twitched at his fingertips to put his arm around her and just tell her everything was going to be okay, that Avocado was going to be okay, it was all going to be _okay_ , and that he was _there_. Lacking in confidence he didn’t act on the urge, and instead stood still and watched her hunt. After Mindy resurfaced with her keys poised in her hand and beeping her car unlocked, she was jogging out of his reach, ending his reconsideration, and into the driver’s side. 

“He’ll be okay, y’know.” Mark said, his casual certainty earning him a soft smile from Mindy as they each slid in. “He looked like he was in good hands.” 

Mindy didn’t reply with anything more than another pursed smile as she revved the engine and drove them back towards the vets. From the passenger side, Mark swallowed against his need to bring conversation and instead, eyed her right hand fidgeting by rolling her fingers in and out of fists before threading his fingers through hers to calm her. 

It didn’t take long to cross over towards the vets again and, despite growing anticipation, Mindy parked the car herself and beeped it locked behind them. She couldn’t stop the fussing of her clothes and bag as they marched back into the vets, causing the receptionists all to look up. One in the middle of the desk with a phone in her hand waved it at them in her way of calling them over.

“I was just calling you,” She started, drawing Mindy in and Mark just as much. “When the next patient is out of the room, you can go in-”

“How is he?” Mindy asked, cutting over the receptionist whose expression told them she was just about to tell her. 

“Well, the vet said he’s fine, but _tired_ ,” The receptionist paused briefly to eye Mark before looking back to Mindy. “He woke up on time, too, but the vet will tell you more.” 

Mindy nodded, supposing she wouldn’t get any more than that, but as they turned to take a seat, the consultation room door opened and the owner and their dog left. As the vet stepped out she met Mindy’s eye and beckoned her in, which was the only invite Mindy needed to be four steps in front of Mark and using the doorframe to hurtle herself into the room. 

“Where-” 

“He’s down the back, still, but I’ll get him in a minute.” The vet answered, whose name tag read Annabell now that Mindy noticed it. “I wanted to explain to you what happens next.”

Mindy nodded quickly but her eyes still glanced to the door at the back of the room, desperate for Avie. 

“His leg has been shaved and cast and he will have a scar, but nothing you will see once his fur grows back.” The vet assured, noticing Mindy’s intake of breath. “Like I said before, it was broke in two places, but they were relatively clean breaks, so for now all you need to do is keep him away from it and make sure he gets his medication I gave you before.” Mindy nodded again, not wanting to interrupt. “So far he’s been quite annoyed by the bandage on his leg, but it needs to stay dry which means it’s your job to keep him from licking it and biting it and generally trying to get it off, okay?” 

“Yes, but I-” 

“Work, yeah, we know we can’t expect you to have your eyes peeled on him for the next eight weeks, so I will bring him up and then I’ll go find a cone, so, wait here.” The vet turned, the knee length white coat swishing as she pushed the back door with her shoulder and vanished down the hall to the right. It left Mindy and Mark to themselves for a few moments where Mark noticed Mindy trying to discreetly wipe her eyes. 

“Hey, hey,” Mark reached to put a hand on her shoulder as Mindy stifled a sob. “What’re you crying for now? He’s gonna be alright.” 

“I don’t even know,” Mindy said with a shrug, “I’m just overwhelmed.” She pushed her glasses up and buried her eyes into her wrists, drying loose tears with the hems of her sleeves. “I’m sorry for crying so much, you must think I’m a-” 

“I don’t think you’re anything, other than someone who’s had a really shitty day, Mindy.” 

“Thanks for not abandoning me.” Mindy said with a teary smile, thinking of all the opportunities he had to ditch her and have a night without tears and cats. 

“You stuck with me for over two years, I can stick with you on a shitty day, so, don’t even think about it, don’t say thanks, don’t apologise or do anything, I’m just gonna be here.” Mindy nodded as a new wave of tears surfaced, she tried to fight against them but as Mark pulled her in for hug, she lost her control. 

“I’m sorry-” Mindy started.

“What did I just say?” 

“I’m sorry your shoulder’s now wet.” Mindy said, her voice muffled from his zipper.

“I can deal with that.” Mark muttered, finding it too easy to rub at her back. Mindy didn’t want to admit to how settled and comforted she felt standing in Mark’s arms in a room that smelled of a mix of chemicals and wet dog, but as the vet pushed her way back through the squeaky door, Mindy was startled back to reality. 

“Avie?” The white crate he was in was rested on the examination table in front of them and as Annabel opened the small door, Avocado stretched out inquisitively. The receptionist had been right, he looked exhausted and even a little dazed, but when he dragged his bright blue cast leg out, Mindy’s hand went straight over her mouth as she gasped. In response, Mark’s hand went to her shoulder automatically as Mindy brought her hands down to cup at Avocado’s face, running her fingers over his head.

“He’ll be feeling fragile at the minute, but I’m sure you’ll be careful with him - I’ll go get a cone for you and then you can take him home.” Annabel left again, neither Mark nor Mindy paying much attention. 

“Hey, buddy,” Mark started and then winced at the sound of his own voice as Avocado watched him for a moment before turning back to Mindy. “Sorry, I don’t know how to talk to cats, he thinks I’m an idiot.” 

Mindy smiled and shook her head, her fingers still behind Avocado’s ears. “You’re doing fine.” 

“Can I pet him?” Mark asked, before tentatively reaching over with Mindy’s permission. “Hey, buddy,” He said again, copying Mindy and targeting behind Avie’s ears. “You really scared your mom today, which is not cool, don’t do that.” 

Mindy quietly scoffed beside him as she ushered Avocado back into the crate for the journey home when the vet returned, carrying a flat cone. “You can put this on when you’re leaving him alone if he’s determined against that bandage, but if he stops paying attention to it, then it should be fine to leave him without it.” 

“How long will it stay on for? The bandage and the cast, I mean.” Mindy asked, poking a few fingers through the crate door to a snoozy Avocado. 

“Well, a while, it needs to stay on until he’s healed, but your local vet can advise from there, I’ll e-mail them the files from tonight and they’ll be in touch with you, but for now, you can take him home.” The vet offered Mark the flat cone while Mindy took hold of the crate Avie was in as they shuffled out into reception.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> welp!!!  
> it has been months and honestly i have a few excuses.  
> 1) my shifts increased at my job from 14 hours a week to 6 days a week  
> 2) i had a slight (catastrophic) writers block  
> 3) 6 days a week returned to 14 hours a week and block did not lift  
> 4) pressure to get "real job" ensued. and failed.  
> 5) block lifted!! wrote an ending!!  
> 6) hated it, scrapped it, wrote plans for 4 more  
> 7) hit 100k! and didn't want to post any of the 15k i've hoarded bc perfection is possible (not really, obviously)  
> 8) forgot parts of my own story, had to read it. subsequently now hate the first 17 chapters. need to rewrite those.  
> 9) what else..... oh!! i have a weird class on on tuesday nights and urgh its a fkn waste of time honestly but that kills my whole tuesday  
> 10) that last excuse was so paper thin i'm sorry
> 
> ugh. overall, i know everyones been messaging me on tumblr and on here asking for updates and at one point i was honestly going to write out the entire thing to an end and /then/ post. which i realise now was a bad idea bc even though i was writing and i have a lot sitting in my docs, it just looked to you guys like i'd abandoned ship. which i haven't, i promise. so as a gift for being an arsehole i'm gonna post 2-3 chapters, or like 15k if i can split it up in one sitting and at least that gives everyone a wee boost. 
> 
> stuff about the chapter: i needed to have mark and mindy interacting for once, so here's literally nonstop m/m interaction/conversation. sorry the splits are kinda weird, this whole set is like one day so it's hard to break it up, but if i didn't it would literally be a 15k chapter and i'm not doing that. what else. yeah i definitely feel like this one is to a better standard than previous chapters (specifically chapters 1-17) so, if anything, y'all just waited until i could write properly. 
> 
> Also!  
> thank you so much (!!!!) to Everyone who left me messages during my disappearance, you made me v happy and kept me going during the hard no-words-are-coming winter. i appreciate every single one. i love yous, even if you hate me rn which is so understandable omg. so yeah. sorry!!! i will do better, i promise!!


	25. Chapter 25

They were barely out the automatic doors before Mark’s hand went out in askance. “Keys.” 

“ _Mark_ ,” Mindy started to argue but a gentle mew from the crate cut her off. She knew he had decided he was driving her back to the apartment and that she had no say in it - especially since he and her mom had already colluded - but it left her wondering just how many times she would have to thank him for helping her by the end of the day. She sighed, knowing she’d never win when she already knew he was right and handed over her keys. “I’m going to sit in the back, so, sorry if you feel like a taxi.” 

“As long as you give me directions, I don’t care.” Mark flashed her a grin as he crossed in front of her to slid in the driver’s side. “I’m really gonna have to put the pressure on NASA to give me my license - I really miss it.” 

“Don’t say that out loud, someone will catch you.” Mindy said, genuinely chastising him while Mark rolled his eyes. 

“What did I say? If they pull me over you’d get a police escort, so, just be a good taxi passenger and tell me where the hell I’m going and how to turn the headlights on.” Mark had them out of the parking lot and heading towards the 99 without much more than a few points from Mindy who had settled Avie on the seat next to hers. Whatever mewing chaos her mom had pictured for their drive back was not the case; Avocado was curled up in a ball - save his bandaged leg that was stuck out at an angle - and sleeping deeply. Mindy sighed at the sight, still reeling with guilt over what had happened. 

“It’s not your fault y’know.” Mark piped up from the front, catching Mindy’s startled glance in the rear view mirror. “If he never runs out, how could you’ve known?” Mark shrugged. “Cats are cats, you just gotta roll with them, really.” 

“Is that experience talking or just the infinite Wisdom of Mark?” Mindy asked with a smirk that Mark mirrored. 

“Both.” Mark muttered. “How is he?” 

“Sleeping, he’s got three hours before he gets any pain meds,” Mindy’s hand went towards the bag at her feet, tapping it lightly to make sure she still had the lumpy boxes. “I hope he doesn’t wake before that.” 

Mark left a beat of quiet, not sure how to comfort her over something that might happen, before he changed the subject. “So, left here?” 

“Yeah, come off and then switch to the two-four-nine.” 

“Alright,” Mark said, changing lanes. “So much better than MAV piloting ‘cause, y’know, you’re in control of a car and it’s not got an escape velocity of… well, it’s not got a reason to use an escape velocity.” He tailed off with a laugh that Mindy mirrored through a smirk before muttering further directions. “How long does it take you to get to NASA? Rush hour must be a dick.” 

“Mm, it has it’s moments, but it’s about forty minutes.” Mindy replied, her fingertips resting on the metal grate of the crate door. “I’m still usually on time though - only late when people make me go for breakfast.” 

“Hey, I told Venkat-” 

“Yeah, I _know_ , and it only did more damage.” Mindy rebutted, ending with a snort. 

“What do you mean ‘damage’?” Mark asked, quizzing her via the rear view mirror and watching her quickly seal her lips. 

“Nothing, I was just…” She trailed off, flicking a hand to signal to forget it before she moved on quickly. “If you take the turn off after the Red Robin sign, we can cut under the freeway and I know a good place for food.” 

“Is it Red Robin?” Mark asked bluntly, a small smirk at his lips.

“No, it’s not Red Robin, it’s somewhere else.” 

Once the teasing stopped, Mindy called Claire, letting her know what happened after she left - and then ignoring her follow up questions over why Mark Watney had been at her back the whole time. She called her mom after Claire since the road was straight enough for a lack of instructive directions not to do any damage. Hearing her mom’s worried voice again had her throat tightening, but she held it together, explaining in a more clinical and detached manner what had happened and how Avocado had been patched up. When Mindy trailed off, her mom interjected to tell her not to worry, that Avocado would be absolutely fine. 

“He has you two to look after him now, right?”

“Yeah, I guess -” She winced as she realised what she just agreed to. “Mom, _no_.” 

Her mom replied with a low ‘mhm’ and had Mindy sighing. They didn’t talk for much longer as Mindy promised to call her again tomorrow now that it was getting late anyway. Her mom teased again that it _was_ rather late - and how exactly was Mark getting home to Chicago tonight? At which point Mindy reiterated her goodbyes and hung up. 

“She alright?” Mark asked, clearly conscious of the sighing and stressed conversation Mindy was emitting. 

“Yeah, fine, glad Avie’s okay.” Mark nodded and started talking again, letting the conversation switch back to being investigative, where he continued to ask Mindy how she got into NASA. Mindy spared rare details about how she met Venkat on her interview day, but he never did seem to remember that. Mark was half way through another question when he spied the Red Robin sign and celebrated with an offering of a flat palm to Mindy for a high five. 

Despite having been playing the map for the last few hours, Mindy was now growing distinctly nervous. Each turn was a few minutes closer to having Mark in her apartment and that was something she hadn’t planned for. After they picked up dinner, she couldn’t put it off with any more stops-on-the-way, no more time wasting trips around shops - they were going back to her apartment and it was happening now. When they reached her lot, she started to panic about the mess of her apartment - something she never usually had to worry about for being mostly organised. Preoccupied with whether or not she had put away the dishes she had last washed - or even washed all the dishes at all (and where the hell did she put her laundry from last time?)- she was startled when Mark opened the car door for her. When she reached to press for the lift in her apartment, her fingers were close to trembling. And at her door, she couldn’t get the key in the lock quick enough and between anticipation and anxiety, she swore twice and had to put Avocado down and use both hands to open a door she could usually do blindfolded. 

“Are you okay?” Mark asked tentatively from her back as she finally got her door open. 

“I’m fine, it’s just sticky sometimes.” She lied, not wanting to admit that her feelings for him being such a damn hero at every turn were setting her all out of place after such a chaotic night. “You can put the food on the counter.” She pointed to her left where her kitchenette was as she felt up the wall for the light switch. She hadn’t realised just how quickly it had turned to night over the past few hours, and now with her lamps and lights on, her apartment looked distinctly cosy; which was something she wanted to ignore. 

“Plates?” Mark asked, pointing to her cupboards.

“Left above the sink.” 

“Left… above the sink- _aha_ ” Bringing two down, he flicked the cupboard door shut before he gasped, causing Mindy to whirl around. “Seeds!” 

“I thought there was something wrong-” Mindy sighed, this day had been far too stressful for anyone to gasp at this time. 

“Hey, they’re growing really well.” Mark said, his finger poking at the soil as his other hand turned the pot. “You’re doing great, Mindy, nice one!” He shot her a grin and the nerves tying her up subsided with a warm rush. “I knew you wouldn’t kill them.” 

“It came close.” Mindy said as she gently rested Avocado’s crate beside his bed he never used. 

“I can’t wait for you to find out what they are - they’re really resilient, so, they’ve been nowhere near dying, trust me.” 

“Resilient? Is that a hint?” Mindy asked as she stood from crouching over Avocado’s crate, debating whether to take him out or leave him where he was. 

“Mm, not really, I mean, loads of plants are resilient so Googling ‘resilient plants’ won’t get you anywhere.”

“Will I ever just guess what they are?” Mindy asked with a raised brow.

“Nope, no way, if you did I’d know you were cheating.” Mark shrugged, dishing out the food they got over their plates as Mindy rummaged through her fridge. 

“I have beer but, if I’m honest, they’ve been here a while.” Mindy pulled one out, holding it to the light as if she knew what sort of anomalies she was looking for. 

“Has it been less than a year?” 

“Yeah, like, three months tops.” Mindy squinted as she remembered the last time she had a few people over that disintegrated into Claire and her getting drunk and watching old reruns of god knows what at three in the morning.

“Then it’s safe.” 

“You know this because…?”

“Because these are the things you think about when you have nothing else to think about and when you have the chance to look it up, you don’t forget.” Mindy gave him a bottle with a quiet ‘ah, right’, muttered into the back of the fridge, pulling out a bottle of water. “Hey, wait, if you’re not drinking, I’m not drinking-” 

“Well, I know I need to take you somewhere later since I’m not having you stay here, waking up every four hours for my cat.” 

“No way, I’m not leaving you _now_ , besides, even if you dropped me somewhere I’d be worrying about Avie anyway.” 

“ _Mark_ , you’ve done enough, you’re gonna have me trying to make it up to you now.”

“Mindy, c’mon, I swear I’d be texting you anyway.” Mindy considered him for a moment, his blue eyes sincere, his palms upturned in open honesty. She pursed her lips and tensed her jaw, even she could tell this debate was a lost cause.

“Is anything I say gonna make you change your mind?” She asked.

“Only if you don’t want me to stay.” He shrugged again and her eyes flicked to the roll of his shoulders. He had put her in a spot she was sure she was over analysing, but even though she didn’t want him to leave, admitting it felt like unchecked exposure of the feelings she had been trying not to let run rampant. Instead of saying anything, she reached into her fridge without meeting his eyes, and pulled a bottle out her fridge for herself.

“You putting out the rest of that or what?” She asked, turning her back to him to fish out a bottle opener from her silverware drawer, not noticing the small smile at Mark’s lips while she reddened over blowing her feelings so overtly. 

“We never did find out the final score,” Mark said, licking excess pasta sauce off his thumb, “I mean, that is if you even want to know the score.” 

“What do you mean if _I_ want to know the score? I think you should be the one worrying.” She handed him a knife and fork and led him to her sofa where she sat with him on her right on purpose - at least this way she wouldn’t be looking right at him the whole night, she needed a break and time to get a grip. She flicked on the tv and switched to the news, her eyes scanning the running graphics at the bottom of the screen. “Oh, here it comes - Cubs thirteen, Mariners - shit.” 

“What was that?” Mark asked, already grinning. “Did I hear twelve?” 

“No,” Mindy insisted, her disappointment clear despite her attempt not to smile. “The match didn’t count, you cheated.” 

“I personally cheated to win the game for the Cubs?” 

“Yes.” Mindy maintained stubbornly.

“And how’d you work that out?” Mark asked, trying not to gloat even though smugness was radiating from him.

“I don’t know, but you did something.” Mindy said with a shake of her head as she switched the channel. “Guess you win that bet then - even though you cheated.” 

“No, it was a pre-bet, remember-”

“Oh, yeah, so really, this was just a fluke and the Cubs'll be out soon enough, no way they'll win.” 

“Yeah, a fluke, definitely.” Mark repeated, rolling his eyes. “You’re more stubborn than me, y’know that?”

“No way, you’re ten times worse than me.” Mindy flicked the channel again, her distaste in reality tv showing. “Y’know, with the whole refusing to die on Mars thing, I think you win.” She continued to flick, balancing her dinner on her knees.“There’s nothing on.”

“It’s a Monday night, what’d you expect? Just put the news on or something - maybe I’m still on it.” Mark laughed, pointing his fork back at her tv. “Yeah, put the news on, I wanna see how the conference went.” 

The conference. This day had been so stressful she had actually forgotten about the conference. The last thing Mindy had been thinking about was that morning; pain-free and easy compared to the rest of her day. The phantom weight of Mark’s hands from her hug that morning returned to briefly torment her as she sat next to him, leaving her hyperaware of the fact that both of them were sitting closer to the middle of her sofa than at the edges. The newscasters finished their piece on the economy and turned to something else, but the sudden smirk across their faces gave it away before they spoke.

“This is it, here we go.” Mark mumbled into his half eaten dinner. “At least Annie looks happy at the start - she keeps telling me her job isn’t to rescue me from stupid things and that she’s _NASA’s_ press relations person, not mine, but I keep her on her toes, I guess.”

“What do you mean ‘at the start’.” Mindy asked.

“Well, you should’ve heard her giving me into trouble for some of my answers afterwards, she was _not_ happy then.” Mark said, reflecting on the the stress Mindy seemed to miss out on. “Teddy wasn’t pleased either, but you know what he’s like, he just sort of sighed, walked away and called me ‘lost fuckin’ cause’.” Mark laughed and Mindy smiled, but was struggling to find the humour in the insult. “Which is kind ironic, but, he doesn’t mean it though.” 

Mindy went to disagree, basing her opinion on her personal experiences with Teddy, but the newscasters switched from reporting on Mark’s sensible answers to the more comedic part of the conference that they called the ‘Mark Watney Magic’. They started with an unexpected view of the staff - using the same photograph Mindy’s mom linked her to that morning. With Mindy at the front, her head in her hands, Mitch laughing and Vincent looking decidedly unimpressed at the whole thing. 

“Aw, Mindy! You’re on international news!” she rested her head in a hand with a sigh, the steam off her dinner being blown out with the force of it as Mark shook her shoulder. 

“My mom’s gonna kill me - in fact, it’s your fault I was even looking like that, really, I’m blaming you.” Mindy pointed her fork at him while Mark’s hands went up in his defence. The newscaster let the tapes play of Mark pulling at his NASA jumper and stumbling over the Armani fiasco. “They still don’t have my name though, so it’s not like anything’s gonna happen.” Mindy muttered, more hopeful than certain as she pushed her glasses up onto her head.

“The conference then finished with Mark giving us all a bit of a puzzle, listen to this and see if you can work it out-” The footage switched to Mark walking out of shot, someone shouting ‘any last words’ before Mark slipped back to the table, spent a moment looking through the crowd before saying his now infamous line about the cat curled up a few feet away. 

“It’s not really a puzzle, is it? I mean, they’re making it out like it’s a code.” Mark commented, “I just said Avocado was a great name for a cat, I didn’t give them a riddle.” 

“Yeah, but, with no context, it’s kind of confusing.” Mindy said, covering her mouth as she chewed. “Like, it’s just not something they were expecting - not that I know what they would be expecting you to say.” 

The conversation dropped for a moment as the clip replayed and the newscasters laughed and speculated on the line, and then on the pause Mark took before the line. “Why do you think he looked for the staff, Joanne?” “Oh, you know Mark, always wanting a rise out of someone.” 

“I wasn’t looking for a _rise_ , I was looking for _you_.” Mark started, an underlying hint of obviousness to his voice was softened with a warm smile at his lips when he turned to look at Mindy, nudging her with his left elbow “I did see you before, but I lost you after I stepped off, you were hiding too well between Mitch and Venkat.” 

“I wasn’t doing it on purpose.” Mindy said quietly, not sure what else to pick up on. 

“Still.” Mark shrugged and took the tv remote from the table and ran back through the news. “I wanna see that shot of you guys standing about - oh, shit, that’s hilarious - look at Venkat, he looks like he’s gonna kill me.” Mark was laughing but Mindy was just reliving the strike of embarrassment she felt at the time. “You don’t look too impressed either.” 

“Just… surprised.” Mindy said, squinting at her own diplomatic term for being shocked into a fluster.

“Mm, I’ll accept that, even though it looks a lot more like embarrassed than surprised.” Mindy said nothing at Mark’s verbal poke. “So, let’s see what you’ve been watching, shall we?” Mark held the remote out of Mindy’s reach as she went to grab for it. “Oh, this should be interesting if that’s your reaction.” 

“Don’t you judge me.” 

“Huh, that’s really, really _boring_.” He said, running the selector down over the lists of space documentaries.

“I said _don’t_ judge.” 

“I mean, I know you work at NASA but, Mindy, you don’t live there, there’s no planet pop quizzes-” 

“I know, the narrator is really calming, okay?” Mindy justified before snatching her remote back. “That’s just tv, there’s movies here too.” She flicked to the next menu and handed it back. “Pick one, there’s really nothing else on.” 

“For being born in the nineties, you sure do have a lot of eighties films here.” 

“I like the colours.” Mindy said, her smirk in her voice. “So, are you gonna pick one or complain?”

“I’m looking, I’m looking-” 

After coming across The Breakfast Club, half watched, on Mindy’s list, Mark put it back to the start and took no objections to his choice as the opening credits rolled. They had both finished their dinner by the first five minutes and with a new bottle of beer in their hands and a secondary on the table, Mindy had set her phone to remind her to wake Avocado and give him his meds in just over an hour's time. With hindsight, it was a bad idea to start the third beer, especially after all the pasta that made her warm and full. Sitting on the sofa with Mark, who was apparently a human radiator, was far too comfortable to to stop her from dozing. Twice she sat up straighter only to find herself slumped on Mark again shortly after. 

Mindy was even trying to repeat it in her head, telling herself over and over to _stay awake_ , but by the eighth repetition her mind was blurred and her eyes were shut. It wasn’t a deep enough sleep for dreams, or even to get the rest she really needed after such a viciously chaotic and emotional day. Really, all it was was a pause in consciousness. Of course, Mark had drifted well before her, his head lolling dangerously to the side by the time Bender showed off his cigarette burn. Mindy let him go knowing that while her day sucked, his hadn’t been much better. Between it being surreal to have Mark beside her, she was enjoying it more than she thought her nerves would allow. He was such a calming presence - even asleep and loose on her couch with his hoodie unzipped and mouth slightly open, she felt at ease. Or more so, with his arms unfurled by his sides, palms up and open, he looked welcoming and while the thought flushed a pink through her cheeks, she couldn’t stop herself from wanting to slide over his lap, lean up against his chest and fall asleep warm, safe and assured that he was just as safe with her and she was with him. 

Her wandering mind didn’t last much longer after that and by the time that she was completely asleep herself, her head was already rolling along the back of her couch to rest against Mark’s left shoulder. Not the light from the tv, the dull sound or the few times Mindy’s phone lit up with notifications, woke, or even disturbed either of them. For Mindy, it was quiet, warm, comfortable and if she had she caught herself like this she would’ve been near giddy. 

For Mark, his brow was creased and the fingers the lay in an open palm between him and Mindy twitched. It was barely forty minutes that they had before Mark’s breathing started to grow shallow and hitched. There was no rain outside, no howling gusts or external forces that prompted the attack; but that was the thing with stress from traumatic situations - it’s triggers were sometimes all within itself. Beads of sweat appeared at his temple despite the room being cool. His brow pulled further and his fingers balled into a fist as the muscles in his arms and throat tensed. When he woke with a start, his heart racing and gasping for breath, Mindy was jolted awake too, her confusion quickly passing as Mark put his head in his hands, swearing as he heaved for breath. 

“Mark-” 

“ _Fuck_ , fuck, fuck-” His fingers in his hair were trembling, and while Mindy knew a panic attack when she saw one, she had no idea how to combat it. “That _fucking_ HAB.”

“You’re in my apartment-” She stuttered, assuming that reminding him where he was might be enough to at least get his breathing level. “Champion Forest, Houston; you had a press conference this morning - and a meeting with the NASA Psychologist - then we went to a bar, my cat got hit by a car and you drove us out to Woodlands.” She trailed off but Mark lifted a hand and twirled it, gesturing her to keep talking, before he held out his hand in search of hers to grasp. “Then, we went to the mall and picked up Avie, you drove us back here, we got food, fell asleep watching a movie and now we’re here, in my apartment, it’s one forty-five and it’s really dark outside.” 

Mark nodded slightly, his head still in his hands and his breathing harsh, but finding an even pace.

“Mark?” 

“Yep?” He sounded out from between his knees, his shoulders still heaving as he breathed. “Yep, yeah, I’m alright.” He rubbed his empty hand across his forehead, catching the sweat on his sleeve while Mindy sat still, still holding his hand in both of hers, watching him. “Shit, I…” Mark trailed off, his vision becoming unfocused before he swore again and stood, stepping to the window and pushing open the blinds Mindy shut earlier. “Okay, it’s fine, I’m alright.” He nodded again, breathing from his nose while trying to convince himself he was alright as much as he was trying to convince Mindy. 

Mindy moved to get him a glass of water while Mark remained at the window, still and solid as his fingers rubbed his temple, his mind clearly focused on his breathing. “That’s why they won’t give me my license back yet.” Mark muttered, his eyes shut against the orange glow of the street lamps. 

Mindy sat the water on the sill beside his hands as she fussed the blinds open further before quickly realising that she had him driving all across Houston today and now this happened - she was already blaming herself when she opened her mouth to start an apology, but Mark cut her off. “It’s not _driving_ that gets me, so don’t do that- they think it was the rover, because it shakes in the wind and if I’m driving and the car goes over a bump or whatever, I’ll have a flashback, I’ll panic, I’ll kill people or whatever.” Mark shrugged, but the street lights still lit a few stray beads of sweat on his temple. “But it wasn’t the rover, it’s never the rover, it’s the HAB and-” Mark pursed his lips, cutting himself off as he dipped his head. His fingers grasped at the glass as he sighed into it and shook his head. “I’ve only slept once since I got back, like, really _properly_ slept.” 

“Won’t the psychologist do something for you? Or get you a psychiatrist?” Mindy suggested, her fingers trying to reach out for him but stopping short a few inches from the glass. Mark shrugged in reply. 

“I’ve tried everything - I’ve taken all the pills, all the teas, hot baths, cold showers, walks, five kilometre runs at midnight…” Mark’s right hand went to touch the corner of the window, pushing it gently; testing how robust it was. 

“Well, what did you do different that one night?” 

“Cheese.” Mark said with a smirk. 

“Cheese is supposed to give you nightmares, not make you sleep.” Mindy replied, mirroring the soft smirk.

“Not Gino’s cheese, Gino’s cheese makes you happy, and I slept like, fourteen hours.” 

“Then why aren’t you home, eating cheese?”

“‘Cause I’m here for conferences and psych appointments to talk about it over and over and over again.” It was starting to become a little clearer for Mindy, about just what Mark was up to during the times he disappeared into NASA. If he was waking up after not even an hour of shutting his eyes thinking he was all the way back on Mars, scared for his life and starving to death - she could see why they kept asking him to go back. She could also understand why he wanted to skip it. “I thought it’d just disappear when I got here - y’know, Earth - but, when I did I thought it was just the excitement of being back that kept me awake for the first few nights… I had this on the ship too, but by the time we were coming back to Earth, I was sharing space with the whole crew, like we were all wrapped up beside each other since the heating in the quarters kept fucking up.” 

“That helped?” 

“Yeah, at first I thought it was heat that kept me subdued, then spending my energy or just being tired all the time doing stuff on the ship, then maybe it was just being close to people.” Mark glanced down to Mindy, testing to see if she was following where he was going. “So, if I added all three up… well, the conclusion from that test was a news conference, but y’know, I tried - and not only was it not worth the trouble, it didn’t work anyway.” 

“What is it you see?” Mindy asked tentatively, shifting from one foot to the other as she leaned her back against the wall and her elbow on the other side of the sill. 

“The HAB.” Mark answered simply. “And even though from where the cots were you couldn’t see the lock, but, you can in my head and it’s after I blew the airlock off so it’s just the plastic sheeting over hole - getting destroyed in the wind.” Mark rested his head against the wall, looking down to the empty streets. “Like, I’m there and I have the glue gun and I’m patching as I can but it keeps ripping - or sometimes I’m not in front of it and I’m in the cot and I can just hear it, the whole place is shaking in the wind.” 

“How long is it until you wake up?” 

“When the airlock bursts and my hands go blue from the cold and it runs up my arms and I start to suffocate, that’s not how it’s supposed to happen but that’s how it goes in my head.” There was a quick flip of irrelevance in his tone that unsettled her, but she was at a loss for words and instead, returned the action of what he had been doing all night for her, and slid her hand into his. “Thanks, Mindy.” He muttered, lightly squeezing her fingers in his. “Man, where’d I be without you?” 

Mindy replied with a small smirk that answered his question; probably exactly where his mind was keeping him. Or he’d just be in a hotel somewhere and she’d be here, lonely, bored and pining like an idiot, whereas at least she wasn’t lonely or bored - just pining like an idiot after someone standing in front of her. And _damn_ if he wasn’t making it difficult not to try and bundle him into a hug and promise she’d look after him, that it was okay to freak out because he had been through enough trauma for everyone and then some. It was always like this - he was too far away in distance or headspace and all she could was watch him explode, she could never and had never done anything about it, but she knew if she hung about like a limp comforter, she’d only feel more helpless.

“You’ll be okay, Mark,” Mindy said, finding enough courage to give him a reassuring smile as she squeezed his hand. “But it’s okay to not be okay, you’ve been through so much and your reaction isn’t abnormal or bad, it’s probably a lot less than everyone was expecting.” 

“How much psych did you do at college?” Mark said, a small smirk at his lips.

“Not that much.” 

“You sound more competent than Doctor The-Rover-Did-It back at base anyway.” He sighed heavily as he watched her fidget with her nails. “I really don’t know where I’d be without you, y’know.” 

“At home, full of cheese and sleeping probably.” Mindy said, trying to laugh off the sentiment. 

“No,” Mark inched a little closer, rubbing his thumb over the backs of her fingers, “I mean,-” Mark was cut off by a sudden blaring beeping and buzzing that gave Mindy a shock hard enough to realise there had been barely a space between them.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> me again. still sorry.


	26. Chapter 26

“It’s just my phone for Avie-” She left the window and went to flick the alarm off. It did the job since not only were Mindy and Mark now more awake than they had been, but a few small mews could be heard from the crate as Mindy approached, getting down to her knees. “Avie?” She called, coaxing him out of the crate. 

It took a bit of convincing to get Avocado in a safe enough position to be lifted from the crate, and carrying him about wasn’t easy either. Mindy hadn’t brought the meds out her bag since she got in and holding a moany cat in one hand and pawing through a deep and messy bag with the other wasn’t easy. Eventually, she gave in to Mark’s offer of help and let him hold Avocado while she pulled out all the meds. With Mark sitting on the sofa, Avocado sitting quiet in his arms and Mindy cross legged on the floor, all she could think about was how unrealistically _cute_ it was for Avocado and Mark sitting together. If only the big blue cast wasn’t in the way, she might have had to walk away to collect herself. 

“This might be easier if you just keep holding him.” Mindy said, waiting for Mark to object, but after getting a nod of approval her gaze flicked down to Avocado. “Okay, Avie, this is gonna taste terrible but I promise it’ll help.” Mindy chewed her lip uncertainly before she, as gently as she could, wrestled Avocado to keep his mouth opened long enough to take the painkillers, anti inflammatories and antibiotics. By the time she was finished, Avocado was reversing himself into the crook of Mark’s arm and hiding from Mindy’s apologetic petting. Even when Mindy lifted him he meowed in protest until she put him down on the bed he usually ignores. 

“You okay?” Mark asked, his eyes following Mindy as she went to stand in her kitchenette, busying herself with watering her seeds. 

“I’ll be fine, I just don’t like it when he’s upset at me.” Mindy smirked at her own words, an automatic response when she was used to being told not to be so dramatic, he’s just a cat.

“He’ll come round, he’s just had a shit day like the rest of us.” Mark not telling her that Avocado was just a cat sent a rush of heat through her, as if she couldn’t be more endeared with him as it was. “You setting another alarm?” 

“Yeah, s’good idea” Mindy said through a yawn. “Next one’s at six.” She muttered before sitting back on the couch beside Mark, putting her feet up against the edge of her coffee table. “Sure I can’t take you anywhere?” 

“Nope, I ain’t leavin’.” Mark stuttered through his own yawn before stretching to put an arm round Mindy and tipping her into his side, causing a flush he couldn’t see. “No way, we’re gonna sit here and watch something shit until we fall asleep again, I’ll wake up in a panic forty minutes after that and it’ll be great.” 

Mark wasn’t far off in predicting how the next four hours would go. The drowsy medication took Avocado first as he curled up in a ball. Mindy, after being tilted into Mark’s side hadn’t moved much further, not wanting to disrupt the position she found herself in. Mark was not far behind her after he took a minute to gently steal Mindy’s phone from her loose grip and put it on the arm of the couch, stopping any bright notifications from waking her up - she might have to be up once every four hours, but that doesn’t mean she had to be up in between times, too. As he set the phone down, it lit up under his fingers, showing the lockscreen with a screed of unanswered and piling messages from several different social media platforms as well as just general texts. It was no mystery that they were all about her appearance on the news and that was his fault. He supposed he should feel guilty for it, but no part of him did - not when he knew that it bonded them a little closer. 

Despite having her sleeping against him, he couldn't say there was nothing between them, he could still feel a small hesitation from Mindy whether she realised she was putting it out or not. He didn't feel it saying ‘no’, more like ‘not yet’. But, in thinking this, he couldn't ignore that she never asked him to leave, she never dropped him anywhere, she let him in her apartment and was happy enough to let him sleep on her couch with her. Mark hadn't realised the transition between them from very distant friends to where they were now, but the level of comfort they had achieved without talking about it, without forcing it, was something he believed to be enviable. Yet, he had been distracting himself and wasting his time with nameless girls from skeevy bars. What an idiot. And, maybe, if he looked back now, he could see a link - the woman he had been caught with had been tall, slender and blonde. Her eyes were a dull, murky brown - not the bright pale jade he was used to on Mindy. Still, it wasn’t like he picked that girl out of a crowd - she approached him - even if he didn’t exactly turn the offer down. 

His eyes flicked over his shoulder, catching a glance of the seeds he gave her on the window sill, lit only by the low shine of the street lights that got up from under the blinds. A quartet of empty glass bottles sat on her counter as well as two empty trays from dinner. The seeds might have been the only permanent feature in her apartment of him, but they still counted. It felt odd, after having such no definite place to call home, yet to find small marks of himself in her’s. It was a struggle for Mark to find warmth, trust and a genuine welcome without a catch or payment in interviews or photos nowadays, but this felt like everything without the drag. It felt honest, even if he didn’t want to admit to his own feelings so soon after such a disastrous mistake in case he seemed insincere. But how could he ignore them? He'd had them for long enough, and seeing her tilted against him had his heart squeezing.

At a buzz from his own cell, he wriggled it out his pocket, finding a long-ignored text from his mom asking where he was. Despite it touching five in the morning, his thumb typed out a quick reply. 

Me: I’m alright.

And he was alright, and with the quiet thought of ‘for once’, he really couldn’t find anything wrong with the moment at all; comfy, in company, and just generally stable. Mark sighed quietly. With a small smile he put his phone back into the pocket of his zipper and attempted to pay attention to the movie that was still playing before flicking it off, leaving them both in the dark. 

It wasn’t so much a weight on his mind that the possibility of another episode would happen, but there was a gentle reassurance in that if it did happen again, Mindy would still be there to talk him back. It was so certain in Mark’s mind that when he opened his eyes to see the white non-flammable sheets of the HAB cots, and watch the plastic sheeting over the DIY’d airlock flit in and out with the force of the winds, that he wasn’t going to die this time. This time, the airlock would hold, this time it’d be fine, he’d live. Still, the airlock burst but instead of his heaving rush back to consciousness, his eyes flicked open and his muscles relaxed with a roll of his shoulders and a single sigh of all the breath he had been holding. It was the least violent awakening he had had since his return and he knew it had something to do with the soft weight against his side. 

Mark rested his head along the back of the couch, taking a moment to enjoy to lack of heaving, the lack of sweat and his stable hands. It was only half five and Mark didn’t have the heart to wake Mindy up any earlier than she had to be. He left her sound at his side and ended up running through a few news stories of the day before catching up on the media’s opinion from the conference the day before. The terms ‘snarky’, ‘inability to reign himself in’ and ‘free-mouthed comic’ were heavily laced through several articles he found, along with a general positive tone. Despite the fact that the conference was to apologise for a half-drunk but full-mistake, barely any of the news sites wrote about that, which left Mark wondering what all the fuss was about in the first place. 

More than that, if the news crews and sites and writers didn’t really care that much then why was he getting dragged through the mud every other week? Why were there articles wondering where he was post-conference that describe him as ‘disappearing not to be seen again’? With a roll of his eyes, he flicked to the next one, wondering what lies were hidden in this. It wasn’t until the last paragraph did his disinterested glaze turn into something slightly concerned when he read about how he had been ‘spotted’ in Woodlands with ‘another tall blonde’ only hours later. The article apologised that the images they got were blurry, the mall’s security feeds were not up to date. Mark scrolled down, worried that he might have dragged Mindy a little too deep but, when the article said ‘blurry’, they meant ‘completely unrecognisable’. Mark snorted aloud before pursing his lips, anxious in case he woke Mindy.

Still, he was pleased that the bookstore cameras were awful. The only details that could be honestly deduced was that there was a couple in a shop, the woman was blonde and the man was dark; beyond that it could be anyone. Mark, sick of reading about his own day, put his phone away and sat in the quiet. The sun was peeking through the gaps in the blinds and sending bars of lights over Mindy’s knees and open palm that was lying on Mark’s leg. It hit him, as Mindy’s alarm went off, that he just thought of them as a couple. 

“Morning.” Mark mumbled, removing his arm from her over her shoulder as she shuffled and yawned awake.

“Morning,” She replied, mid yawn, as she pushed herself from her couch to start fiddling with the meds again. “You sound more awake than me, did you not get back to sleep?” Mindy crouched next to Avocado, rubbing a gentle hand over his head that he mewed at. 

“I did, I just woke up a bit before you.” Mark adjusted himself to sit on the edge of her couch, leaning over towards her as Mindy’s expression changed to confused, but before she got to ask about any details, he cut her off. “Do you want me to hold him again?” Mark asked, nodding towards Avocado who had stretched out under Mindy’s hand. The medication wrestle was easier than the last one as Mindy had everything ready to go before it began. It helped, too, that Avocado was relaxed enough in Mark’s arms as he had been under Mindy’s hand, to the point where the ‘wrestle’ was more of a displeased paw on Mindy’s hand and a grumpy meow. After that he was let go of to find a corner to glare at them from while Mindy raided her cupboards for breakfast. After handing over control of the toaster to Mark, she found a moment to text Venkat, explaining that she would be late in while giving him a few details (‘cat disaster, broken leg, alright now, just grumpy - I’ll be in at 10.’). She left her phone on the counter, before pouring coffee and watering her seeds.

“I am doing that right, right?” She asked, hovering the glass over her seeds waiting for approval before she done anything. 

“You can’t pour water into a plant wrong, Mindy.” Mark said, half rolling his eyes and turning away back to sit in front of the morning news. “Besides, they’re doing great.” Throwing a smile over his shoulder, she reflected one back. She was genuinely pleased with her seeds progress, although they were more like shoots than seeds now. She continued to fumble about her kitchen, sorting more things for Avie than for herself before she left Mark in charge of catsitting while she showered for work. 

Mark was barely alone for a minute before Avocado was under his feet, his nose poking at Mark’s shin, asking for attention. Carefully, Avocado was picked up and sat on Mark’s lap to be pet, starting with his ears like Mindy had shown him the previous night at the vets. 

“You’re alright, aren’t you?” Mark said, running a hand down Avocado’s neck and back. “You kept Mindy company when she was upset at me, right?” Avocado’s head dipped as a knock came to the door, and with Mindy nowhere to be seen, Mark didn’t think twice about tucking Avocado under his arm and answering the door. 

“Mi- oh, no, Mark-” Claire said with a shy smirk. “And Avie… is Mindy…?” Claire’s eyes ran through the apartment as Mark shook his head. 

“She’s in the shower,” Mark tilted his head in the vague direction Mindy went in while Claire found something of a twinkle of mischief in a smirk. “You here for an update on this guy?”

Claire’s hands went out to rub at Avocado’s face as she looked past to the bandaged leg with pity. “God, how long does he have that for?” 

“Dunno, few weeks at least, he’s getting used to it already, though.” Mark gave Claire a smile, but Claire was to preoccupied with Avocado who purred against Claire’s fingers. “You wanna come in, I don’t think she’ll be long-” 

“Oh, no,” Claire said immediately, taking her hands back. “I can get her later, I just wanted to make sure Avie was alright - your phone’s going.” Claire pointed to Mindy’s phone on the counter, flashing and buzzing.

“Shit-” Automatically, Mark went to pick it up after seeing it was Venkat, not thinking that this was Mindy’s phone. “Hey, Kapoor, I’ll call you back, gimme a minute-” Mark pocketed the phone and turned back to Claire. “You sure you don’t wanna…?” Mark trailed off, gesturing into Mindy’s apartment with his free arm, but Claire shook her head. 

“Nope, really, it’s fine, let her know I stopped by though.” With one last curl of Avocado’s ear, Claire left with a sly look in her eye and a glance over her shoulder as Mark toed the door shut. 

“We should call Kapoor back, shouldn’t we?” Mark said to Avocado, who was still happily wrapped under his arm, not realising just how used he was to talking to a pet after being so daunted by it. At first, Mark pulled Mindy’s phone out his pocket before he thought better and used his own. “Kapoor, sorry, someone was at the door-” 

“Did you pick up on Mindy’s phone first or am I losing my damn mind?” 

“Uh…” Mark stuttered before attempting to pass it off as nothing. “Yeah, so?” 

“Where are you?” Kapoor asked, ignoring Mark’s question. 

“Just, y’know, at her apartment.” 

“And you answered her door?” 

“Yeah.” Mark felt surprisingly close lipped about the apparent interview. “And?” 

“And...I probably don’t want to know any more, so, can you just put her on the phone?” 

“Nope, she’s in the shower.” Mark said plainly, listening to Venkat sigh on the other end.

“Then, just tell her she can come in at twelve, alright? And I’m sorry about Avie.” 

“Alright, sure thing, I’ll tell her- Oh, wait, could you do me a favour?” 

“Depends on what it is.” Venkat replied, his tone suspicious. 

“Could you maybe bring in the shrink?” Mark asked, wincing at his own request. 

“Yeah,” Venkat was surprised, but since he’d been almost physically fighting Mark on the psychologist-front, he wasn’t about to deny it. “Yeah, of course, what time suits?” 

“Well, twelve.” 

“Coming in with Mindy, are you?” Even from on the other side of the phone, Mark could tell Venkat had a smug smirk on his face. 

“Unless you’re gonna pick me up?” At that, Venkat snorted and hung up on Mark as Mindy returned, going straight for her phone. “Oh, Kapoor called to tell you you can go into work at twelve - he says sorry about Avie - and Claire was at your door too, seeing how he was… ‘he’ as in Avie, not Kapoor.” Mark clarified with a smile while Mindy tried to swallow her horror. 

“Venkat called here and you picked up?” 

“Yeah, was that bad?” 

“He’s just never gonna let that one go.” Mindy muttered into the cupboard she was raking through, refusing to elaborate. “Okay, there’s nothing any better than toast to eat here, do you wanna go out? There’s a place not far.” 

“What about Avie?” Mark asked, raising the bundle in his arm.

“Well, he’s asleep so I don’t think he’d mind for an hour.” Mindy smiled as Mark looked down to Avocado, not realising that at some point within the last few minutes, Avocado fell asleep in his arms. Mindy didn’t blame him, in fact, she sympathised with her cat now that she knew how easy it was to fall asleep under Mark’s arm. And thankfully, even as Mark half awkwardly placed Avocado on his bed, he slept on, letting them leave with a quiet click of her door. 

They didn’t know, that as they drew up to the local diner, they had already been clocked by the staff and the customers. The constant company of each other for the last day in consistently safe and press-free places had Mark’s arm over Mindy’s shoulder without a second thought from either of them - not even a small blush from Mindy appeared to acknowledged the act - while onlooker interest rocketed in the surprising display that suggested a couple only the day after an apologetic conference. The server at the door balked when they noticed Mark, but said nothing as they lead him and Mindy to an unassuming booth near the middle. It was a poor placement. Those at Mindy’s back had a full view of every smirk, glance and reel of laughter Mark gave her, while those behind Mark had the same view of Mindy - both views had been equally exposed before they even had their order placed. 

Of the few times Mindy raised her eyes beyond Mark, she did catch a few onlookers, but she didn’t consider it to be anything more than what she had experienced before; people watching Mark in awe and ignoring her - and of course, not actively doing anything about it, just watching. In her last assumption, she was wrong - she hadn’t noticed the phones that had been discreetly hidden under tables or raised for fake phone calls. It wasn’t only Mindy who had been so duped, but had Mark thought to lift his eyes from hers, he might have spotted something afoot; like the sudden increase in patrons, or the increase in current patron’s friends turning up and squeezing into booths and pulling in extra chairs. 

They didn’t sit for long after they were finished eating and toying, asking for the cheque through gesture from across the diner, only to argue aloud over who was paying when the waitress wandered towards them with a white slip.

“You paid for dinner, there’s no way you’re paying for this too.” Mark said, the heel of his shoe on her side of the booth and firmly stuck on the top of her bag, refusing to let her get her purse. 

“Yeah, ‘cause I dragged you to Woodlands, so stop being a child-” Mindy replied, wrestling her bag from under his shoe. 

“Mindy - don’t -” The waitress slid the slip onto their table as Mark pointed to Mindy, “Do not let her pay, it’s not her turn-”

“Actually, it’s on the house.” In five words, the waitress quelled the fight between them immediately. Mark’s shoe fell off the seat beside Mindy and Mindy’s grip relaxed around her purse. “If you wouldn’t mind saying hi to the kids, that is.” 

Mark’s eyes lit up at the offer and accepted it immediately, making Mindy smile softly at his genuine enthusiasm - it would seem, ptsd and all, that he would never stop being able to light up a room with a smile. With the younger kids getting high fives and pictures, Mindy sat and watched, truly interested. She was content with just getting to see Mark interact with people who found what he did as incredible as she did, but it wasn’t until one of the smaller kids turned to her did she feel uncomfortable with the attention. 

“What do you do?” The girl with her dark hair in bunches asked, leaving Mindy stuttering.

“Well- I-” 

“You don’t know who this is?” Mark recovered, giving Mindy a smirk and a glance out his eye before turning back to the little girl who shook her head. “This is Mindy Park, she’s a satellite engineer and y’know what?” 

“What?” 

“She found me on Mars, she saw me up there first - she rescued me.” Mark grinned at the little girl who eyed Mindy. 

“How?” The little girl asked, her small brows pulled as Mindy pursed her lips trying not to blush with Mark’s praise she’d heard so many times over.

“Mindy’s got big cameras in the sky over Mars and she saw me, which told NASA where I was, which started the rescue.” 

“So, she saved you?” The little girl concluded, still watching Mindy.

“Mhm, she got me home, isn’t that cool?” The little girl nodded profusely before her mom steered her away, letting in another few kids, but as they left the diner, the little girl turned to wave bye at Mindy, not Mark. Quietly stunned, Mindy waved back.

It wasn’t long after that that they left, quickly stopping back at Mindy’s apartment, both of them still energetic over the impromptu meet and greet. They found Avie where they left him, and after Mindy stopped by Claire’s for a quick chat, catsitting arrangements and the promise of wine and dinner that night at Mindy’s, she and Mark headed into NASA. They weren’t more than half way up the escalator before Mark began bargaining for their next meet.

“How long’s your shift?” Mark asked, his tone searching. 

“Just to six, but I promised Claire I’d be back for a girls night.” Mindy explained, watching the excitement leave Mark’s eyes.

“So, no to drinks?” 

“Not tonight unless you want to join us.” Mindy repeated, her fingers tapping off the bannister of the escalator. 

“Mm,” Mark hummed, thoughtful. “I don’t think Claire would be too happy if I stepped on your night, besides, I should really see what this shrink says before I organise anything, anyway.” 

“Is that why you’re here?” Mindy said, a little surprised - she didn’t even think to ask why Mark was here, she just didn’t think he’d be going anywhere else. 

“Yeah, thought I’d see if I can finally get my license back.” Mark gave her a quick look that told her it wasn’t about the license, not really. “And that’s why Mitch is hanging about like he’s got nothin’ better to do.” Mark nodded over to the glass barrier behind Mindy up on the first floor where Mitch waved towards them. “I get a bodyguard now?” 

“More like a babysitter.” Mitch levelled, making Mark roll his eyes and Mindy smile. “Heard about your cat, Mindy, is he alright?” 

“Yeah, he’s fine.” Mindy said, her brow drawn since she wouldn’t have classed her cat getting hurt as workplace gossip, but apparently it was now. 

“Alright, well, doc’s waiting, Mark.” Mitch said, slapping a hand over Mark’s shoulder to steer him away. 

“Good luck.” Mindy said, knowing what this meeting would mean to him and while Mitch was hovering she could feel her hope for a hug goodbye slipping away. “But, I’ll see you - we got a rematch, right?” Mindy said with a smirk and took a step back.

“We do, I’ll text you.” Mark said, taking a step towards her to cancel the one she took back. As Mindy raised one arm to wave them off, Mark raised both of his, inviting her for a hug - and after all this time almost pining for another one, she didn’t care who was hovering beside them. With his arms crossed over her back, and his hands warm on her sides, she happily pressed up against him, muttering a quiet thanks for last night while he replied to forget about it. After Mindy’s hand slid from around Mark’s neck and Mark’s hands uncrossed from her back, Mark tipped her chin and pressed a quick kiss to her forehead while Mindy felt her temperature rise rapidly. 

“Wow, cheesy.” Mindy let out, deflating the tension she was sure she built herself with her unfiltered comment she had only meant to think, leaving Mark to snort and laugh at her response.

“Sorry, couldn’t help myself, and I didn’t want to embarrass Mitch or push my luck by doing anything else,” Mindy’s eyes flicked to Mitch, whose own gaze was inspecting the ceiling, instead of wasting time on blushing or dissecting that statement with lip-biting hope. “But I’ll text you, promise.” Mark finished with a shrug and a warm smirk, something with a hint of a chase. Mindy nodded, trying to stop watching Mark roll his lips between his teeth as she stepped back, still somewhat aware she was here to work. 

“I better go-” 

“Mars is waiting for you.” Mark said with a nod that Mindy reflected, not meaning to ignore Mitch who said bye when he found them finally breaking apart. It was a few moments before Mindy processed what Mitch had said, her brow raised in apology as she stuttered out her own goodbye.

“Sorry, Mitch, bye - I’ll see you around-” Mindy dropped the palm she had stretched to aid her apology as Mitch waved her off and turned. She did the same, hurried around on her heels and walked briskly to SatCon - but not without throwing a look over her shoulder to catch Mark doing the same.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> okay, so yeah, there you go! i have another 3k left in my docs, but its not enough to post. but i will go back to posting by chapter rather than posting when my docs start acting laggy bc theres 25k in one doc. soz again @ everyone for the wait, hope this at least makes up for it a little bit /:


	27. Chapter 27

Once again grateful that the lights were so dim in SatCon, she slumped to her desk and fanned her face with her hands as she unpacked. Although she left her desk last night at a reasonable time, with all the things that had happened between then and now, it felt like she had been away for days. While she downloaded her most recent data, she brought her phone out her bag and set it under her computer screen - just in case. He did promise, after all. The loading percentage for her data dump increased gradually, and as Mindy debated walking into the break-room for lukewarm coffee, Lee from launch threw a ball of paper at her for her attention. 

“So, what happened?” He asked, his usually unemotive face displaying no clues to what he was referring to, so Mindy ignored the slight taunt in his tone and assumed it was about why she was so late in. 

“My cat got hit by a car last night, so I had to make sure he was alright this morning before I came in.” Mindy grunted, specifically leaving out just about all the details she was still too hurt over to consider. Besides not wanting to start crying at her desk again, she also knew that Lee didn’t talk to her unless he was after something and Mindy had learned a long time ago to keep her details to herself or otherwise become workplace gossip. 

“Oh, right, yeah, but I meant with Watney.” Lee pushed and Mindy noticed that the few workers within earshot were suddenly pretending not to be listening in while Mindy felt under the spotlight in a dull room. 

“I don’t know what you mean.” Mindy trailed off, not wanting to fill in any gaps accidentally. 

“Well, what happened last night?” The question was pressed again, and this time a smirk appeared. “C’mon, Mindy, if you’re spotted at breakfast, that usually means something happened the night before.” The smirk grew to a grin that a few other faces started to copy as Mindy grew uncomfortable.

“What do you mean ‘spotted’ - how did you know-” 

“That you were at breakfast with Watney? ‘Cause everyone knows, Mindy, s’on the news now.” 

Mindy’s brow creased as her computer beeped with her data. She turned back to her screen but ignored the images and numbers to pull up a new internet tab. She searched for nothing, just went straight to the CNN homepage and clenched her jaw in disgust to the top news story. She didn’t read past the headlines before she went to NBC, only to find the exact same scenario. She ran through other news sites she knew and found no difference, and just as she felt her throat tense and her lips purse tightly, Annie slipped in and without needing a hint, Mindy rightly assumed she was heading for her. 

“This is not my job.” Annie assured Mindy, her voice deliberately low and quick to keep out of the ears of Mindy’s coworkers. “Mark is not my responsibility either and maybe I knew the minute we found him that it was gonna bite me in the ass one day, but damn it, Mindy, I thought you were on my side.” Annie sighed, her free hand went to her forehead as her other wrapped around her ever-present mobile. 

“I don’t even know what’s going o-” Mindy started.

“Why do you think I’m here? The good of my health?” It was snappy, but Mindy couldn’t take offence - despite the stress, she was sure Annie was here to help. “Look, there’s nothing much I can do at this point, so I’m warning you not to do anything but go home tonight and stay there.” 

“What if I-” 

“Stay at home.” Annie reiterated, making no space for ‘if’s or ‘but’s. “The bad news is there are pictures - everywhere - because Mark let a gang of strangers go wild with their cells like an idiot.” 

Mindy wasn’t sure what she was feeling was lining up with Annie’s advice. The idea that her face was being ran across the world right now was disconcerting, but it lacked the shock value Mindy thought she _should_ have felt, when in reality, she was just frustrated. She knew her reaction to the picture of Venkat, Mitch and her was worse to her reaction now, despite the seismic change of reporting. She also felt the need to stick up for Mark - he was being kind and he shouldn’t be getting the blame for that. 

“There’s videos, too.” Annie reported, her tone more soft and her gaze cast down, a clear offering of sympathy that Mindy didn’t feel was necessary. Sympathy meant pity, something that Annie regretted happening - something Annie felt shouldn’t have happened - but, if the byproduct of having a warm morning with Mark and a few sweet kids was having it on the news, then even that wasn’t a consequence that caused Mindy regret. 

“What does that mean, exactly?” Mindy’s gaze shifted to the papers on her desk, the only discomfort she was feeling now was the small heat of embarrassment in realising that the videos may have centred on more than just the impromptu meet-and-greet.

“There was a breach of privacy - Mark should’ve been more careful, but you weren’t to know.” That was the confirmation Mindy was waiting on - it wasn’t the meetings with the kids and interested adults, it was the breakfast they had together. Still, somehow, it felt too distant to really affect her, she still felt like it had just been the two of them that morning. The open flirting and their legs resting against each other under the table; it was as close to transparent as it could be without either of them specifying what their breakfast really felt like: a date. 

“So, I just do nothing until they get bored of talking about it?” Mindy ventured, still feeling a massive disconnect to the situation. Even as she sat here, listening to Annie, all she wanted to do was go home and sit on her couch with Mark and Avie and laugh at the news again like they did the night before. She briefly followed the want in her mind, remembering quietly the comfort and warmth she had had against him and how they dissected the conference reports as journalists speculated. She didn’t last long in her own mind, and when she returned she knew she was being vetted, but what was the point? The videos were out there and she had no tools to use against it or motivation to do anything about it. It was then she remembered that the past couple of times she had been hinted towards, they never did manage to connect her face, name and person from the separate smaller reports that had been building together. “Am I still nameless?” 

Annie’s eyes flicked up from her phone screen as she silently shook her head. “No, Mindy, they got it this time - Mark said it, sixty people heard it, now the world knows it… and the speculation-” 

Mindy grunted harshly as she rested her head into an open palm. “Has Mark heard?” 

“No, he’s down with the shrink and there’s no reason to interrupt him.” Annie quickly explained before her eyes narrowed. ”Y’know, I thought you’d be in more of a panic.” Annie crouched to be level with Mindy, resting on the back of her heels. “Is it a shock?” 

“No, it’s just like… I don’t really care, I guess?” Mindy squinted at her own words as Annie cocked her head to the side. “Maybe that’s the wrong word, it’s just too far away and I’m tired of this being shocking - he’s gonna be on the news for anything he does for the rest of his life - so, I’m there for a breakfast one time.” Mindy paused to shrug. “No one’s really paying attention to me in this, it’s still about him.” 

“People are definitely paying attention to you, Mindy, and if you’re looking for a list of ‘em, I can sure name of at least one.” Annie raised her brow as Mindy tried to roll her eyes, but stopped before she seemed rude in front of Annie who was only trying to help. “He’s down stairs and his name is Mark - and my point is is that maybe people wouldn’t be paying attention to you they way they are if it wasn’t so blatant that this wasn’t going to be a one-time breakfast - or just so different from the last time he was caught.”

Mindy pursed her lips at that, unsure whether or not to say anything at all. She agreed to herself, however, since Annie was right - it definitely didn’t feel like it could ever be a stupid fling. They had a strange shared history, even if Mark didn’t really know about it for a while - and now, they got on almost too well. Andy, from her mom’s party, said they ‘fitted’ and that it ‘made sense’ - maybe Mindy should apologise to him now that she knew he was only telling the truth. 

“It’s going to be on the six o’clock” Annie continued, breaking Mindy’s thoughts. “You need to understand that people love Mark and he had a conference _yesterday_ to apologise for fucking up but, now he’s got another girl hanging on his every word - don’t argue, alright.” Annie pointed at Mindy with her phone, stopping her in mid frown. “We might know it’s been going on longer than Peaches has been around, but they don’t.”

“Annie, it’s not been-”

“It’s going to be on social media, it’s already trending on four sites, and at this point, it’s too late to do anything about it.” Annie paused and Mindy took a breath, crossing her arms across herself. In a quiet reassurance, Annie rested her hand on Mindy’s arm. “I can ask them to cut their segment time, but, you’re gonna have to ride this shit storm.” 

“So, I don’t have to do a press conference then?” Mindy asked with a small smile. “I don’t think I’d be very good at it.”

“No, no press conferences for Mindy.” Annie shook her head as she stood, her hand going to Mindy’s shoulder. “So, go home after your shift, don’t talk to anyone, don’t go on any social media, don’t do anything stupid, just… ignore it.” Annie gave Mindy another sympathetic look and Mindy returned a pointed one.

“I’m fine, really, I’m fine and I won’t do anything stupid.” 

“Fine, you’re fine, but it’s still _happening_.” Annie sighed. “Just wait until you get recognised in Walgreens at one in the morning buying tampons and Reece’s, then you won’t be fine.” 

“Thanks, Annie.” Mindy called after her as she went to leave, thankful for Annie delivering all the wisdom she could during her busy schedules. It was odd to feel that, right now, people across the country were learning about her and all she could consider was that Annie thought that Mark and her had ‘been going on’ for a while now. And despite the clearly intrigued onlookers around her, Mindy swivelled in her chair back to her screen to compile and analyse her data - she didn’t need to worry about what they thought, she was finally sure enough that there was definitely something between herself and Mark, she wasn’t making it up and it wasn’t in her head, there was something and more than just she could see it. She also knew that it wasn’t anyone’s business but Mark’s and her’s - even if he was absurdly famous and considered ‘public property’ to the press, it was still _theirs_.

It played on her mind for the next hour until Venkat sent her an e-mail asking her to compile her data into an academic paper for review. With her new attention, the academic world were looking to peer review her findings on Mars, which, while logical, meant that Mindy actually had to stop drifting through her thoughts, break apart the paper she already had and edit it to follow scientific guidelines. It meant that she actually had to stop dreaming about the warm crook she had against Mark last night and work. It wasn’t difficult once she started, and by the time she was considering leaving for the night, she had a large chunk of the easiest section of her paper rearranged to fit the official tone for submission. Still, it wasn’t complete by days, but she knew as well as any that papers take time and for now, her time was up. She sent a copy to her own e-mail for safety purposes, but Mindy had no intention of working on it tonight - not after she was expecting to be less than sober with Claire in an hours time. 

Packing her bag, she cleared her desk and clicked out of her computer as she stood. Her phone remained silent, picking up no new messages even as she clicked the home button again to check. While Mindy wasn’t versed in therapy sessions, she wouldn’t have imagined one to last five hours, or if it had, she felt infinitely more sorry for him to be grilled like that. She swung her bag over her shoulder and sighed at the weight of it pulling her right side down. Shuffling towards the door, her head down and her fingers struggling to straighten out the material strap of her bag, she heard the small sound of wounded surprise as she shoved the door open before she seen who she had slammed into.

“Mindy!”

“Mark,” Her small stun of surprise melted into an apologetic smile as he rubbed his shoulder. “Did I get you?” 

“Yeah, but it’s fine - we can add ‘being hit by a door’ to the bottom half of the list of injuries I’ve sustained.” Mark mirrored the small smile Mindy still wore as a brief moment of comfortable silence fell between them. 

“So, are you going to Mission Control?” Mindy asked eventually, stepping to the side of the doorway she was still blocking. 

“Oh, no, I was just…” Mark gestured uselessly before setting his hands onto his hips. “Y’know.” 

“Standing in the corridors?” 

“Yep,” He answered quietly as he turned to walk out with Mindy. “You finished for the night then?” 

“Yeah, girl’s night tonight.” Mindy reminded as she strode to keep in step with Mark. “Hey, did you get your license back?” A strike of hope filled her eyes as she looked up to him, but the roll of his had disappointment surging in. “I’m sorry.”

“No, I mean, they actually said they’d give me it next week, if I keep to the therapy plan until then.” Mark’s tone was dismissive, but Mindy grinned at his side.

“That’s great, Mark.” 

“Yeah?” Mark asked, his tone picking up as he looked over to her. 

“Yeah, definitely - it’s only a week to manage, right? You can do that.” She assured him with an honest smile and he seemed to consider it for a moment, biting his lip in thought before he nodded in agreement. 

“Yeah, just a week.” He muttered, talking himself into it. “Yeah, that’s not that bad - hey, I think that deserves a high five.” Raising his palm to Mindy, she slapped her own off his with a light chuckle as Mark draped an arm over her shoulder, slipped her bag off and put it over his left shoulder along side a bag of his own. 

“I see Kapoor still has you luggin’ satellites.” He commented, raising a brow at the weight of it as he smoothly put his arm back over her right shoulder. 

“You do know he isn’t my line manager, right? He is _a_ manager, just not directly _mine_.” Mark shrugged and she felt it. “But, no, it’s not satellites, it’s papers - they want me to put my Mons evidence into an academic format and submit it to be reviewed.” 

“Oh, shit, that’s great, too, we should celebrate- oh, you’re with Claire tonight.... Celebrate with her, but I’m still taking you out too.” 

“If you take me out I’ll miss the deadline for it - it’s kinda soon, and I’ll need to do some research for parts.” Mindy said, cocking her head to the side as she considered what she needed to be looking at. The fluorescent lights in the atrium they stepped into picked the gold from Mark’s hair, and had Mindy not been taken by the conversation, she would’ve been transfixed. 

“So,” Mark started, his arm sliding off Mindy’s shoulder. “I wanted to ask if-” 

“I’d seen the news?” 

“Yeah,” Mark sighed and came to a stop, his brow folding into an apology. “I’m sorry, I didn’t think, I just-”

“It’s fine.” Mindy cut in, giving him a reassuring smile that turned his apology into uncertainty. 

“What do you mean ‘fine’? Did you actually _see_ the news or what, ‘cause it’s not fine - they keep making jokes about how lonely I was up there, which _is_ fine, I don’t care what they say about me, but they’re so wrong about you-” Mindy’s overt lack of worry had his ramble come to an end. “Why don’t you care?”

“I had a nice time.” She said with a shrug, “It was fun, I had a good morning, you helped me with Avie, you made some kids happy… so, some of the people uploaded their videos and they weren’t just you being nice to the kids,” She shrugged again, smirking at her need to shrug. “It’s not that I don’t care, I just don’t _mind_ , there’s a difference.” 

“What’s the difference?” Mark asked, still not quite convinced that Mindy was understanding the situation. “‘Cause I mind, it’s infuriating they won’t leave you alone-” 

“But I’m okay with it, they’re not going to get any actual information, they’re just gossiping and as if I haven’t had enough of that already.” Mindy added coyly, only hinting towards the amount of sly glances and pricking ears around her any time Mark comes up in the conversation - or even the amount of straight forwards texts and e-mails just asking about her and Mark. Being speculated about wasn’t new to Mindy, and even now, with it being spurted across news stations all over the country, it still didn’t feel like anything more than simple high school whispers. “I mean, what’re they gonna do? Kidnap me and force me to talk about you?” 

“They might.” Mark said, his childish tone apparent enough that a petulant pout wouldn’t be amiss. 

“They’re going to be after you for a while and this time I got caught, too, but, I can handle it.” Mindy assured.

“Well, you say ‘this time’ like it’s the only time.” Mark mumbled. 

“What?” 

“Nothin’ - so, you’re really not bothered?” He asked, finally conceding to believe her.

“Nope.” Mindy replied. 

“And you really had a good time?” Mark followed, a little quieter. 

“Yes,” Mindy nodded. “So, can we stop standing in the doorway, we’re gonna be a problem if someone comes.” 

“Oh, right, yeah, you have Claire to go get drunk with, right?” Mark recalled, swinging an arm over her shoulder again as if they didn’t stop to discuss the ‘scandal’ on them. 

“Something like that,” Mindy admitted, fully knowing that there were three bottles waiting to be shared between the two of them sitting in Claire’s apartment right now. “You got plans for tonight?” 

“Mm, packing mostly, or mentally packing since I’ve already physically packed.” Mark said with a smile as he lifted the bag he had been carrying before he had taken Mindy’s.

“Packing?” Mindy looked up to catch his eye, not realising she had a fiercer response to that than she had to being on the news. “Are you leaving? I thought you had to stick to a therapy plan?” 

“Yeah, going home for a week and I do, but I have homework being e-mailed to me to do between now and then, so as long as I keep doing that and record stuff and keep the shrink informed, I’ll have my keys back.” 

“Oh, right.” It was difficult to keep the disappointment out of her voice, but she thought she had managed it well enough as they split to swipe their way out of security. “So, you’ll be back next Wednesday?”

“Most likely,” Mark said as he stepped back beside her, “I mean, I’m just going back to get away ‘cause the shrink thinks being around right now is still NASA is too soon-” 

“Mindy!” The call from Annie came from the other side of the atrium, her high heels clacking rapidly as she bolted towards them. “Dont-” 

Mindy’s shoulder rested against the dark glass of one of the many push doors onto the parking lot and as her attention was centred on Annie, her shoulder and Mark’s automatic hand pushed the door open to an array of flashes and shouting from a group of twenty or so people. Mindy staggered back into NASA as quickly as Mark had pulled the door shut, just as Annie arrived to yell 'no comment' and pull them both a few extra steps back.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> so it wasn't quite a month since the last update, but a lot of crap has happened irl between the last update and now. some good crap, some bad crap, but all in enough crap to stop me from writing.   
> in other news i have a complete plan written out to get me from here to the end - i just need to write it chapter by chapter now.  
> in other other news, i have some one shots planned too so i'll turn this into a series no doubt.   
> but also dont panic, we're still a bit away from the ending.   
> uh yeah, i hope you enjoy it as per and it was a difficult ending to find bc thats not where this part ends in my docs, so it was difficult finding a split. anyways, hopefully things will chill out soon and i'll have more time to keep writing but please be patient w me


	28. Chapter 28

“I said ‘don’t’.” Annie repeated as she caught her breath. 

“It was a bit vague, Annie.” Mark said, rolling his eyes so as to miss the look Annie was drawing him, and before Annie could bring out her fight, Mindy cut in. 

“What now? I can’t leave?” She gestured to her keys in Annie’s hand and Annie shook her head. 

“No, you can, I just need someone else to go get your car and take it round the back,” One of the security guards offered their help and fought off the press to find Mindy’s car in the lot. “And get away from the doors, c’mon.” Annie beckoned them in as she started walking briskly back through the atrium and into the lower corridors. “They appeared after I spoke to you, Mindy, otherwise I would’ve warned you.” 

“It’s okay.” 

Annie threw a quick look over her shoulder, still unsettled by Mindy’s level of calm. 

“What?” Mindy asked, aware of both Annie and Mark watching her. “I’m not bothered, I take pictures of the same thing all day - _I stalk Mars_ \- and now they’re stalking me - maybe the subject’s a little different, but the basics are the same, I’m used to it, it’s not a surprise, it’s not getting to me.” 

Annie looked over her other shoulder to Mark who shrugged. “I don’t get it either.” 

“What’s not to get?” Mindy asked, frustrated she was being grilled for being okay with something. “Would you rather I was upset by it? Wouldn’t that just mean that it wasn’t worth it?” 

“Well, Mark, wouldn’t it?” Annie responded sarcastically, leading Mindy’s words onto a suggestion that something more had happened between them.

“N-no-” Mark stuttered, barely catching a swing door that Annie had marched threw in time before it hit him. “I just thought you wouldn’t want people spying on it.” 

“I already told you, I had a nice time what difference does it make if people know that? It’s a fact, it’s true, I’ll tell them myself-” 

“Do _not_ tell them yourself.” Annie and Mark chimed in unison. 

“I wasn’t going to _actually _\- forget it, I’m fine with it and obviously no one else is so can I go home now? I don’t even know what corridor we’re in any more.” Mindy peered into rooms they were passing but with no sign of anyone having been down here for a while and no signs on doors, the long hallways felt like a maze and when a fire escape door appeared at the end, she was sure they were lost until Annie opened it.__

“Oh, that’s my car-”

“Yes, that’s why we keep Ramone, now get in it and don’t do anything stupid - Mark, get in the back and stay down-” Annie pointed to the back door of Mindy’s car and then opened it for him with a raised brow when he didn’t talk a step forward.

“I’m not getting in the back-”

“I’m getting drunk tonight-”

Annie looked them both up and down before closing her eyes, sighing and adjusting her stance. “Mindy, get in the driver's seat.”

“Alright,” She took a step towards her car and turned back to Mark, unsure whether or not to say goodbye when Annie barked ‘now’ and left Mindy no choice but to jog the rest of the way to her seat.

“Mark, get in the back.”

“No, Mindy has a thing on tonight, I’m not going back with her.” Mark folded his arms across his chest, standing his ground.

“Get in the back.” Annie growled.

“No.”

“If you don’t get in the back of this car you won’t see your car keys for another three months, you won’t get a safe apartment here for a year and you will have to sleep in NASA in isolation pods the whole time, so I think you should get in the back.” There was a brief stand off with Mark testing the water and Annie staring him down, unblinking as she held the door open for him.

“Mark, just get in, there’s a draft-” Mindy called from the driver’s side. Another moment of silence passed before the trunk of her car opened, Mark dropped their two bags in and trudged around to the door that Annie hadn’t been holding open. It was a small protest, but the only one he could muster in the present.

Before either of them could say anything to Annie, she had slammed the door she was holding open and knocked on the passenger seat window. “Don’t do anything stupid, don’t post any pictures, don’t tell anyone where you are, don’t do anything, don’t touch anything, don’t go out, don’t be seen, Mindy come to work tomorrow like you normally would but if you see a group of people with cameras at the front, come around the back and park here, got it?”

"Yes, Annie.” She replied dully, feeling she was in middle school again, but she was still grateful she didn’t get drawn a look like Mark did before Annie spun on her heels and left. “How do you feel about red wine and bad action movies?”

“Aw, Mindy, I’m ruining your night.” Mark deducted, disappointed in himself as he looked to his feet, not bothering to make any gestures at the press they just whizzed by.

“No, you’re not-”

“I am-”

“Or,” Mindy rushed to talk over him, “Maybe I’m just kinda glad I get to spend more time with you before you go.” Hoping that that would quell his fired up sense of self hatred for now, she flicked him a smile in her rearview mirror as she turned onto the freeway. Working her phone out her jeans pocket, she threw it over her shoulder for him to catch. “Text Claire, tell her I have a plus-one tonight and if she wants, she can bring her’s.”

“Your phone’s locked.” Mark said, waving the lock screen at her.

“Oh, fourten-zero-three.”

“Mom’s birthday?” Mark asked as he typed.

“Avie’s.” Mindy replied quietly, pursing her lips.

“Cute - so, just if she wants to bring her…?”

“Boyfriend, yeah.” Mindy swallowed, trying to be far more invested in the light traffic around her than in the word that just came out her mouth. “Just, pretend I sent it, put ‘M’ at the end - for Mindy.”

“Alright, done.” Mark raised his arm to pass her phone back as it beeped in reply. “Will I read that?”

“Yeah, please.” Still cringing from the b-word, she kept her eyes on the road, trying to remain detached from the conversation.

“Uh, okay, hi Mindy, Pep - Pep? Peep?-”

“Pep, but, his name is Liam, I don’t know where Pep is from.”

“Cool, well, Pep’s away in Vancouver for the week - nice, what does he do?”

“I literally don’t know and neither does Claire, she says it’s too confusing and he gets annoyed when she asks.”

“Would you say that ‘martian astronaut’ is any less confusing?” Mark wondered aloud.

“Well, it has a title.” Mindy said diplomatically.

“True,” Mark supposed, ending his thought his a brief roll of his shoulders that Mindy caught in the rearview mirror. “Alright, Pep’s away in Vancouver, blah, blah, can’t come so just me - at least those three bottles will be more fairly shared, winky face-” 

“You didn’t have to say ‘winky face’.” Mindy cut in, but caught him winking from the backseat and almost ran a red light.

“Is it Mark?”

“What?”

“Claire’s asking if it’s Mark - am I Mark or do you have more Mark’s in your life?”

"You’re my only Mark.”

“Will I answer her?” Mindy deliberated for a moment after Mark asked, weighing up the consequences of Mark having her phone, a truthful answer to Claire’s question and Claire’s unwitting reply.

“No, it’s alright, she’ll just find out later.”

“Too late, I said yes, and she’s already typing back.”

“Mark-”

“Holy shit-”

“What did she say?” Mindy almost yelped, her eyes flicking between the road and the rearview mirror as Mark’s brows rose.

"Peaches who? Damn straight! Mindy you’re in, feel free to signal me out if you think things are going well and you’re getting luck-” 

“Okay, thanks, that’s fine you can stop reading that now and throw it out the window.” Mindy rushed, already brimming with embarrassment so much she could feel her face hot in the blow of the cool air while Mark laughed in the back.

“‘Peaches who’,” He repeated. “I like her, she’s funny.”

“I’m certain that if I crashed and died right now I might be okay with that.” Mindy muttered through gritted teeth.

“Alright, but please remember I survived Mars, I’m not gonna be happy if I die in your car.” Mark snickered.

“That’s alright, you can live, I’ll just crash the front of the car.” She bargained with fake positivity. 

“Mm, sorry, I don’t think I can let that happen, I mean, I spent a few years under your care and I didn’t die once, so I think I’m gonna have to keep you around, y’know, for the good of my health.”

Caught at another red light, Mindy slid her forehead against her steering wheel, still reeling from when Mark read that text.

“So, the media say the same things about us all day, more or less, and you only panic when it’s from someone you know?”

“No, when you read it out loud to me.”

“Right.” Mark sounded out in understanding. “I mean, that’s nice of her, clearing off if you’re going to try and seduce me-”

“Please stop talking.”

“And she asks not to forget to tell her how I was tomorrow, ‘cause she really want’s to know-”

“Mark-”

“Oh my God, no way!”

“What? What’s she saying now?”

“No, your mom’s calling!”

“Don’t you dare answer tha-”

“Helen!”

“ _Mark_ ” Mindy’s wide-eyed panic twisted to suspicion as Mark’s conversation died. “She’s not on the phone, is she?”

“No, she is ringing, I just haven’t answered.” Mark showed Mindy the flashing phone in her mirror. “See?”

Mindy groaned in response, knowing she’d have to deal with that sooner rather than later as her phone recorded a missed call from her mom. By the time they had pulled into her lot, Mark had charmed a smile on her lips and pulled her out of the murky mood she had been falling into at the prospect of dealing with her nosey mom. When Mindy rounded her car to grab the bags out the trunk, Mark beat her to it, refusing to hand her her bag as he slipped it over his shoulder beside his again. In the elevator, they were pressed against each other, side by side in the otherwise empty square where neither of them mentioned it, just continued their conversation on how Mindy and Claire’s nights together usually worked. At her apartment door, she hunted for her keys in the bag still attached to Mark’s shoulder as he stood patiently.

“Thanks.” She said, smirking.

“S’what I’m here for.” He muttered as she let him in and knocked on Claire’s door on the other side of the hallway. Mindy had hardly taken her knuckles from the door when it was yanked open to a wine-laden, grinning Claire, who was more appropriately dressed for a night out, not one their nights in, with her dark hair pulled up and makeup perfect.

“If you’re gonna look like that all night, I’m gonna stay in my own apartment.” Claire said, assessing Mindy’s dark glare she had pulled after Mark turned his back.

“He read your text.” Mindy delivered bluntly, enjoying the shift of overconfidence and excitement to awkward unease and embarrassment on Claire’s face.

“The, uh.. the bad one?” Claire’s lip pulled as she grimaced at the thought.

“Yeah, the bad one.” 

Claire moaned in chagrin and thumped her forehead off her doorframe, continuing her grump as Mindy took a precariously perched bottle of wine out Claire’s arms and turned to get back across the hallway, only stilted by Claire pawing at her arm.

“Wait-”

“What?”

“I can’t go in _now_!”

“Why not?” 

“It’s Mark _Watney_ \- in your _apartment_ \- about to see me _drunk_ after reading a really not-for-his-eyes text.” Claire worried, her voice quiet and pitchy.

“You’ve spoke to him yesterday.” Mindy reminded her, aware of their quick impromptu meeting at Mindy’s front door after Claire gave her a moment-by-moment walk through later via text. "And I should be the one worried about the text, not you."

“But that was a surprise, like bumping into someone at Walmart-”

“Will you just come over, Avie’s waiting.” Taking Claire by the arm, Mindy walked her a few steps beyond her front door across the hallway to Mindy’s. “At least you didn’t put your heels on.” Glancing at Claire’s paw socks as she locked her door, Mindy was met with a look of panic.

“I should get my hee-” 

“Just get in already - did you phone the pizza?” Mindy asked as she opened her apartment door to Mark holding Avie and examining the seeds on Mindy’s windowsill again.

“Yeah,” Claire breathed out, pouting her lip and tilting her head at Mindy in a silent mew of ‘cute’. “Should be here in a few - hey, Mark.” Claire’s confidence was somewhat present, her voice wavered slightly as she clung to Mindy’s counter top for support but Mark didn’t seem to pick it up as he greeted her back.

“Sorry for crashing your night,” Mark started, gesturing with Avocado.

“It’s fine, right Mindy? I mean, guests are welcome.” Claire offered a wide grin, her awkward nerves setting a moment of silence that Mindy ended by declaring the wine a necessity and cracking open the first bottle. For being so calm and collected about her stumbling stint on the media, having Mark and Claire in the same room together was making her as nervous as seeing another missed call from her mom recorded to her phone. To bring a stop to the calls and texts, she left the conversation to send a small paragraph to her mom.

[19:10:23]: Everything’s fine. They crowded the doors at NASA when  
we were leaving, but I’m home and we’re having pizza with Claire and  
Avie - who is a bit more perky today - and it’s all okay. We’re not putting  
the news on cause we don’t want to bother with it so you shouldn’t either. 

[19:10:50]: mindy! This has been on the news all  
freaking day and you text me now?? Call me

[19:12:03]: I can’t step out, i’m sorry but i was working and then it was  
a rush when we left cause the reporters. I didn’t  
mean to not talk to you. But it’s  
alright - i’ll call you tomorrow, i promise.

[19:12:25] fine

Her mom was clearly not happy with her at all, but at the minute, she couldn’t do much else. She didn’t feel like talking about it, she felt like losing herself in the wine she was drinking as they sat on the floor with her coffee table shunted the the side, pizza in the middle, surrounded by good conversation of anything _but_ today, anything _but_ speculation. Even if she was on the receiving end of two types of secret looks; small smiles from Mark and knowing glints from Claire, it was better than hearing about it from someone else who didn't have a clue. With a bottle and a half down, Mindy was feeling far more loose with her smiles and laughter as she tried to stop Claire from embarrassing her any further over past plant experiences after her seeds were brought up. 

“Then, the flowers I got you for your birthday-” Claire started and immediately, Mindy panicked.

“Claire, no, this story isn’t fair.”

“No, it is, you’re an idiot and Mark should know,” Claire turned slightly, her hand holding her glass covering Mindy from gesturing any more in her defence, while her other hand aided her retelling to Mark. “I got her this bouquet for her birthday, and they came with those fake water droplets ‘cause I got her the fancy kind, right?” 

“The plastic water droplets?” Mark asked, raising his brow at Mindy as though he could tell where the story was going while Mindy dipped her head to her hand. 

“Yep, the _plastic_ water droplets that sit on the petals and leaves and shit just to look nice- and what did she do?” 

“Let me guess, she didn’t water them?” Mark said, shaking his head at Mindy. 

“Not only did she assume that eight plastic water droplets were real, she then refused to actually water them, she didn’t cut the stems or use the plant food that was _taped to the wrapping_.” Mindy moaned in complaint as Claire chastised her. “But, you know what she did do to them?” 

“What?” Mark asked, the pull in his brow confused that leaving her beautiful bouquet to die was not the end of the story.

“Put them in a pot.” Claire said simply, nodding as Mark looked at Mindy in both disbelief and accusation.

“A pot? Are you serious?” He stuttered.

“I don’t have vases!” Mindy cried, her hand still over her eyes as she hid from her own stupidity.

“A freaking medium sized pot - dry pot - and since the bouquet was too big to sit in the pot and not fall out, she perched them against the wall while sitting on the _floor_.” 

“There was nowhere else.” Mindy pleaded, feeling attacked.

“Jesus Christ,” Mark laughed and as Claire lifted her hand to continue the story, Mark waved his back, “Wait, wait, I need a minute first- Mindy, if you had told me this story before, I don’t think I would’ve given you those seeds.”

“Hey, that’s your fault, I told you I was bad with plants.” A small smile touched at her lips as she was remembered being faced with a bag of dirt and a tiny packet of seeds.

“Not _that_ bad.” Mark confessed. “I thought you meant like, you got one of the poor plants from a supermarket and it died - which is like getting a goldfish from a carnival: it’ll probably happen anyway - but not _this_ bad of your own free will.”

“Yeah, well she only did seventy percent of the damage, that blue-legged demon in the corner did the rest.” Claire eyed Avie who remained distinctly uninterested in their less-than-sober laughter. “By the time I got in to see the chaos the next day, Avie decided to use the new ornament as a scratch post and promptly shredded half the flowers over the fuckin’ floor.” Claire took a sip of wine as Mark laughed on and wiped her lips with the back of her hand to start again before Mindy could cut in. “Then, she got home,” Pointing to Mindy with a sloshing glass, “Sees me brushing up petals and leaves and plastic and goes ‘what did you do?’ - what did _I_ do?” 

“Oh, come on, I didn’t say that-” 

“You did!” Claire almost yelled, inhibitions letting loose. “I didn’t talk to you for three days ‘cause you fucked those flowers up so much.” She finished with a grin as Mindy laughed into an apologetic grimace.

“I’m sorry, but really, you should’ve known by then not to give me flowers.” Mindy shrugged, her brows still pushed up in apology as Claire leaned over to press a quick kiss to her cheek. 

“S’okay ‘cause you paid for a weekend away to the Keys for me and Pep.” 

“Wow, a whole weekend away?” Mark asked, adding up the flower disaster and equalling a weekend away didn’t seem to make much sense and Claire agreed, adding disbelieving ‘I knows’ as Mindy shrugged.

“I felt bad about the flowers, and it wasn’t just ‘cause of that, it was an early birthday present too-” 

“Eight months early.” Claire affirmed.

“Just wondering, but, how bad do you feel about not seeing me on Mars before you did?” Mark asked as Claire snorted.

“Suddenly not that bad.” Mindy divulged sarcastically. “Besides, I thought you were indebted to me? Wasn’t that how this was working out so far?” 

“Oh, you’re right,” Mark thought for a moment then aimed a question at Claire. “So, are the Keys like _the_ Claire and Mindy make-up destination to be taken to, or are other options available? Just, y’know, wondering.” The wink he gave to Mindy had her pouring everyone the last of the wine from bottle number two and the start of the wine from bottle number three as a distraction.

Eventually, when the last of the the third bottle had been poured out they decided to put on the tv and to brave the late news. They remained on the floor, none of them bothering to move any further than to lean for the remotes. Mark remained on Mindy’s right and Claire on her left as she flicked over the nbc to find a nightly political update. 

“Boring,” Claire called out. “Just select the Watney report, here, give-” Taking the remote from Mindy, Claire’s inaccurate aim eventually clicked on the right report and let it play. “Hey, at least you looked nice.” 

“Thanks, I try my best.” Mark cut in.

“I was talking about you anyway.” Claire replied, leaving Mindy to sigh and roll her eyes at her depreciation. 

“So, now, Miss Mindy Park remains unreachable for her comment, so this is what we can assume so far-” The reporter pulled up a graphic of a time-line starting from years ago when she spotted Mark on Mars. 

“Has it really been that long?” Claire asked.

“Guess so.” Mindy replied and Mark nodded as he placed a hand on her knee. It was a silent thanks and she felt it.

“So, we find here she spotted him, but they had no immediate contact the whole time - she watched him, saw everything he did, but he didn’t know, then, skip ahead to his landing,” The timeline continued, full of assumptions until they reached the publication of Mindy’s Mons discovery, calling her ‘a gifted employee’ as Claire whooped and Mark turned to smile. “Following that, the infamous crew dinner where she was invited - at the time, it had been reported she and Watney had been close already, sitting near him, but no real evidence of much else here-” 

“Is this weird for you?” Claire asked quietly as Mindy chewed a lip thinking of her answer. 

“Nah,” Mindy shook her head, “S’weird, but not bad, just…” She squinted as she thought of a word, watching the reporter dip in and out of different points where Mindy had had no time in the spotlight and Mark had plently. “Just, like, unexpected, but at least I’ll never forget any dates, now.” 

“Then, following to just a few weeks ago, Mark getting caught on his riotous weekend-” 

“Riotous.” Mark repeated, rolling his eyes. 

“Yeah, Mark, what happened on your riotous weekend?” Claire asked as Mindy unconsciously pursed her lips. 

“Stupid fuckin’ mistakes, really.” Mark shrugged against the back of Mindy’s couch and the way his jaw set, Mindy could tell he was embracing another round of guilt over it. She nudged his shin with her foot and gave him a smile that he mirrored. 

“And where was Mindy? Employee timesheets acquired from NASA show she was on paid leave, but no one would confirm where due to employee data protection.” The reporter explained, almost apologetic. “Chances of her being in Chicago with Mark are slim; surely, with the way he’s acting now, he wouldn’t have went off the rails had she been with him-” 

“This is kinda creepy.” Claire slurred, her words running together. “I don’t like it but I wanna know what they’re sayin’ too.. S’addictive.” 

“There is a chance, Mindy was either abroad or home for the time she was away - we’re sure she’s from Florida, but-” 

“ _Florida_?” Claire choked out as Mark scoffed. “You’re too pale to be from Florida, that’s stupid.” 

“Either way, we cannot assume that she and Mark were together during that time, either geographically or in a relationship.” Neither she or Mark budged at the speculation, but she could feel Claire’s eyes on her. “This brings us to the press conference, when this was snapped-” The view split to the picture of Mindy surrounded by Venkat, Mitch and others. “Right after Mark’s famous last words about ‘Avocado’ being a great name for a cat - we still have no answer for what this means, but it definitely does seem to mean something to the main three here.” 

“Poor Avie, maybe one day he’ll be famous.” Claire commented, watching Avie’s ears prick at the sound of his name. “Although, if he does and there’s a cat more famous than me, I’ll be pissed, Park.” Mindy smirked at the idea, the wine and heat of her unusually busy living room making her tired. 

“Going forward again, we come to yesterday morning; arriving in Mindy’s car, they both seemed to involved in each other to realise anyone else; big smiles and Mark all over her, it’s difficult to pinpoint where the affection began, but it’s unmistakable.” Mindy wanted to agree there, it was difficult to pinpoint where the change happened, but as the channel played different clips of videos that customers had taken from that morning, it was truly impossible to warp the picture. In plain terms, they looked like a couple having breakfast, all smiles and flirty glances. A few portrait orientated videos caught the way their legs were resting against each other, and even a few light instances of chastising where she hit her ankle off his as he laughed. If it hadn’t been herself, she would’ve been sick with jealousy and if it hadn’t been either of them, she would’ve assumed they were together. But it was her, and it was them, and suddenly she wondered what the hold up was. 

“I think I’m gonna crawl home.” Claire said, tipping her glass to finish the last few drops of wine. “Literally.” She added as she dragged herself towards Mindy’s kitchen counters to slide the glass up towards the sink. “Do you think Mrs Rover’s is gonna give me into trouble if I rolled across the hall again?” 

“Mm, do you mean forward roll or like, sausage?” Mindy clarified as Mark said ‘sausage’ under his breath with a chuckle. 

“Well, I’m definitely not sober so there’s a chance death may occur if I forward roll.” Claire said in her best academic voice while slurring her s’. 

“Then, if you’re loud like last time and slam your head into the door, she will definitely give you into trouble.” 

“Does that mean I’m gonna have to stand up?” 

“If you can.” Mindy only watched as Claire dragged herself to an upright position via the cupboard handles in the kitchen. “I’m impressed.” 

“Me fuckin’ too… where’s my keys?” Mindy grabbed they set of keys that were sitting splayed on her coffee table and crawled on her knees towards Claire who was half crippled by the door. “Thanks, sugar.” Mindy smiled at the nickname; ones Claire only used when she was too drunk to catch herself. “Well, Mr Watney, very nice gettin’ drunk with you, we’ll do this again sometime, and good luck with this,” Claire said, patting Mindy’s head. “‘Cause she’s about t’ fall asleep in like, real soon.” 

“Am not, am fine.” Mindy softly argued before briefly clinging to Claire’s leg in a quick goodbye hug. 

“See ya, Claire.” Mark said, the wave of his hand not quite getting the height he had planned before it hit the floor again. Mindy stayed by the open door, making sure Claire got into her apartment and didn’t keel over in the hallway. After another few minutes of not-so-hushed goodbye’s between their doors, Mindy slipped the door shut and crawled back beside Mark. 

“She’s right.” Mindy slurred.

“‘Bout what?” 

“I’m gonna fall asleep in like a few minutes.”

“Go to bed then.” 

“‘M gonna.” Mindy asserted with a deep pull of her brow as she pushed herself up and back onto the couch Mark had been sitting against. “See, am here.” She yawned and felt her eyes closing against her will.

“Don’t you sleep here again, no point in both of us gettin’ crippled by sleepin’ on couches.” Mark tried to convince her, but she was stubbornly shaking her head, refusing to move. “If you don’t go yourself, I’ll carry you.” 

Mindy assumed the threat was empty, and remained shaking her head on the couch, but her assumption had been wrong. Mark stood, and despite his tolerance still needing built upon, he was still too tall and too stocky to be as affected by a bottle of wine like she and Claire had been. 

“Come on, then-” 

“Mark, you’re not gonna-”

“I _am_ gonna.” He pulled her away from the corner of the couch and lifted her with an arm at her back and one under her knees. She clung to him after a rush of expletives at the unsteady rush, fearing only a little in case he dropped her. “You’re gonna have to tell me which door’s your bedroom.” 

“This one.” She reached out to push it open as Mark turned to shoulder it the rest of the way. For the next few moments in his arms, her eyes shut and she rested against his shoulder. It was only short but it was enough time to feel more at home than she did any other night she’s stayed in this apartment. Her eyes were still closed as she was gently released to her mattress, but she still somehow managed to grab at Mark’s wrist before he turned to leave. 

“Night, Min-”

“No, lie down, you can’t keep sleepin’ on my couch, just lie down.” She could feel his hesitation, but she could also feel herself so dangerously close to losing her metal to sleep. Pulling on his wrist again, she moved back to create space for him. “If you don’t lie down, I’m gonna be super pissed and really tired and really hungover, so just lie down and if you panic, it’ll be alright.” 

“Mindy-” 

“Do it.” Without any more convincing, she could hear him kick off his shoes and move to lie down. She shuffled into his side, her head on his shoulder and glad for the hand that wrapped over her hip. “See, s’okay.” 

“Can’t believe you got me drunk to take advantage of me like this.” Mark said with a breathy laugh as Mindy gently huffed in discord as her palm slowly slid across his chest. 

“Glad you made it back.” She muttered, barely distinguishing one word from the next.

“Glad you saw me.” Mark answered, pressing a kiss to the crown of her head as she sank into sleep and he followed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> yay! look! you didn't even have to wait that long for this chapter at all!! anyways idk if you can tell but we're getting close to the end. or, you might not believe me come the next chapter but i promise we are. anyways, i hope you liked this one. it finally had a bit of cute in it for once.  
> also, thanks to everyone being v supported of my unrushed approach recently. and funnily enough like, the day after i posted my last chapter with my notes asking to be patient, well i ended up getting a new job. full time permenant but lmao i dont even know if its day shift or nightshift. i dont know my hours, i dont know a thing. i haven't accepted it yet (i probs will when i find out what it is), but idk, knowing i have something sitting waiting for me sort of gave me some inspo and we're so close to the end rn that i could literally do it within the month. wait what date is this... 11th... i could maybe do it within the month.... ish.  
> anywayssssss  
> point is, i do have a new job on the horizon (first real job wow i'm adulting) so i wanna try and get this wrapped up before i lose all my free time. but, in saying that, i'm not gonna suddenly rush it so dw, it's not gonna be finished in 200 words.  
> esp not when i'm literally giving you a 5k chapter now.  
> also, did anyone notice we're finally FINALLY over 100k for definite now?? incredible. i started this fic with the idea of "big mark/mindy get together fic" and it's hit 100k like ????? what!!! and all you guys who read it so regularly and love it and let me know. it's so weird. i love it.  
> ???? this note is getting so sentimental wtf.  
> anyways! let me know what youre thinking as ye always do!! i love to hear it. i'm still @greglet on tumblr so dont forget to hmu there too!


	29. Chapter 29

When Mark woke a few hours later, it was near three in the morning. He didn’t wake in a panic, he didn’t wake in a breathy sweat - Avie had batted the bedroom door open and slinked in just to turn away. It was only a noise he wasn’t used to while Mindy slept on, unfussed by her cat. Her continuously even breathing pulled Mark back to sleep like a lullaby. Before he succumbed, he became briefly mindful of where he was, thinking on how far he had come in half a year. It felt contrived to be lying on Earth in the dark of three in the morning, with Mindy, when he knew that Mars was out there. But then it almost felt contrived to think that he had done that, that _he_ had been _there_. Not that he could ever put it down as a bad dream or an intrusive thought considering the mental and physical scars he had from his trouble, but there was an aspect of fairytale to it. Still, the mental scars had been taking it out of him more than he wanted to admit, while the physical scars lay in haunting decoration. He could manage day-to-day so long as no one or nothing set him off, but it was at night when he closed his eyes and he couldn’t distract himself any longer. He had been told, and he had told himself, he couldn’t stop living because of his stress disorder, and that he had to go on. But, what else was there to concentrate on after that? A loneliness deep and hungry, but unanswered? When he assumed a relationship was out of the question, he helped himself to one night, his thought being that even if he did wake in a vicious panic, he could hop out and never be seen again. That gave him enough reassurance to commit to his plan, even if it felt like a short term solution to a long term problem. Of course, it wasn’t long at all before he learned how harshly that had backfired. And yet, through it all, without question and only a slight sting of justified disapproval, was Mindy.

Mark generally accepted the fact that he had been stupid. Stupid, blind and unwilling to see what was in front of him due to a dark self-depreciation. He had felt close to Mindy the moment he saw her - from the moment he had _heard_ about her - and still, he refused to get closer to her in case she backed off. He needed her as a friend, he had thought, not realising he already had her like that.

But, that was then, and now was not friends. His warm palm remained over her hip and her hand hadn’t moved from the centre of his chest, nor her head from his left shoulder. They were both claiming, maybe Mindy more than he was at the minute, but after what she had had to deal with, how could he blame her for wanting to pin him down like this? He had made her watch him come so close to death for so long, he was in awe of her tolerance, and her response by putting her head on his shoulder and her hand on his heart. It didn’t feel so much as a claim but a gift to ebb at the sharp corners of the loneliness he had been dealing with so poorly.

He couldn’t stop himself from thinking how they made sense, how they just worked. It was sort of universally romantic that, despite the distance, she was there for him first - there for him the whole time and there for him since he returned. She had been the first to accept him and his mental insecurities rather than telling him he would be ‘back to normal’ or ‘fixed’ soon enough. She had been the first source of Earthly belonging he had found who also had some idea of what he went through, too, whereas not even the crew had that. They didn’t watch him, not that he blamed them, it was just impossible for the crew to even know he was still on Mars… but, again, that’s where Mindy came in. She was there at every turn, just where he needed her, always saying the right thing, always expressing the right emotional response, always being just herself and yet somehow fitting with him and understanding him. When she didn’t understand, she set aside the patience to listen to him and to help him, which felt more therapeutic than anything he had ever heard from the shrink. Yet, even though she catered to him, it wasn’t beyond her personality, it wasn’t beyond who she was nor was it out her way to do so. And with that, she still hid from the idea he owed her, she never wanted anything in return - other than for Mark to be alright.

Maybe it was because it was after three and he was tired, or that he was still clouded from the first full bottle of wine he had drank in four years, but he couldn’t ignore the prickle of connection from where her hand was sitting. He didn’t want to ignore that his chest swelled at the thought of how, despite all her caring for him, she was still so perfectly her own person. She didn’t need him, she never did. They were brought together under a incredibly odd strike of the universe, and he needed her way more than she needed him. But, in saying that, it was clear to even Mark that she liked him - he wasn’t all that blind anymore. A lot of the evidence for that lay in where they were now; her black room with no more space between them. He supposed that was the explanation for it - all that time spent so far away that now, neither of them were ready to let the other one away. On that thought, part of him wanted to wake her and promise not to leave, promise not to come face to face with death or rolling rovers - to tell her he was hers if she wanted him. The other part of him, sensible and sobering, let her sleep.

When Mindy woke after seven, too used to an early routine, her hand balled against her head as she collected her memories against a dim thud. Realising she shouldn’t be alone, her balled fist spread to feel a rising chest lifting her fingers. Her eyes remained shut, just enjoying, memorising and soaking in the heat and comfort as the beat in her head lessened slightly. She was almost worried to open her eyes and be faced with a blunt reality, but when she did force a gap between her eyelids, nothing felt blunt. It wasn’t often she had a chance to really look at Mark, to see the way the blonde wisps of his short sideburns met the beginnings of an unshaven shadow. His mouth hung slightly agape as he slept and his usually expressive brow was restful. She found herself imagining his lips tweak into the smirks, smiles and grins she was starting to encourage. Her fingers twitched with want to run over his jaw but were interrupted by the thought that her alarm was still due to blare. Feeling the solid rectangle digging into her back, she fetched her phone from under her without moving too much from her position nestled against Mark. Apart from the alarm, she only had a few notifications to deal with. A call from her mom last night and a text saying how her mom knew she had a night with Claire, but she would appreciate a call soon. A few emails streamed in, nothing special or interesting. Just as the time on her phone ticked over to quarter past seven, when her alarm should have sang, a text slipped in from Venkat.

[07:15:04]  
Hi, please drop mark off at the train station  
for 12 and if you’re in satcon any  
later than 1 your line manager is coming for  
blood. Might be mine. Could be yours.  
Don’t know yet.  


Mindy sighed as Mark’s chest rose, the realisation that the time they had left wouldn’t be warm and intimate, but a five hour goodbye, sank her mood.

“Are you awake?” Mark asked, his voice cracking from his sleep making Mindy freeze up as she realised she was still imposing.

“No?” She lied after a moment of rapid mental turmoil, wincing as she did.

“Well, it’s amazing how you can use your phone and sleep all at the one time, no wonder NASA hired you.” Mark replied, time and place not dictating his sense of humour. “Why’d you lie?”

“Didn’t know what else to say.” Mindy confessed, a small shrug aided her admission but she had yet to move her head from his shoulder. “If I said yes I wouldn’t have an excuse to still be lying here,” She didn’t feel the flush she expected as the words left her lips. “And I’m still trying to remember how I even got here.” She added in a whisper, hoping the dim room and lack of eye contact would hold her divulgence secret.

Mark’s reply was a brief but amused hum from his throat that left Mindy’s brows pulling.

“What?” Less of a question, her tone of stern concern had him stifling a quick laugh.

“Nothing,” Mark assured, curling his hand more claiming around her hip. “Just what you said applies to me too, y’know, rememberin’ how I got here.”

“Oh, right.” Mindy replied quietly, thinking over her earlier admission.

“But it’s comin’ back to me now.” Pressed Mark, his tone of foretelling amusement heavy in his words.

“Is it?” Mindy played along, prodding carefully before she became the target of Mark’s joke.

“Yeah, I think… I think you got me drunk and seduced me.”

“Yeah, right.” Mindy snorted and rolled her eyes as the small heat of wishful thinking coloured her cheeks.

“Okay, fine, but you did drag me to your bed-”

“That’s such a lie.” Mindy retorted, sitting up from his shoulder. “I did not drag you, you carried me-”

“So you actually do remember how you got there?”

“I remember up to then, but I was tired-”

“So, begging me to lie beside you?”

“I did not _beg_.”

“Threatened.”

“I...” Mindy sighed and shrugged, “Fine, I might have lightly threatened you to lie down, but I just meant not on the couch y’know, s’bad for… posture.” Mindy flapped a hand and turned to shuffle off the end of her bed, running a hand through her hair as she did.

“Posture.” Mark mouthed, watching Mindy cross her room.

“Posture.” She repeated while she escaped to blush and wince in private.

Mindy was reminded she was still playing host when Mark asked for for the shower and fetched the bag he had brought with him from NASA yesterday. She decided to shower later - her colleagues had seen her looking worse than just slightly hung over - and let Mark commandeer her facilities as he needed them considering the journey he had ahead. Both of them were aware she was taking him to the train station (wherever that was), but neither of them had brought it up specifically. Before Mark had went to shower, he mentioned it vaguely as a question - “Did you get that text? From Venkat?” - and Mindy only nodded in reply. She chewed on her lip now, with a medicated Avie purring on her knee, thinking about how it all felt disjointed. Mindy wanted it to feel cohesive and warm and together where they could get lost in their conversations like they usually do, but with Mark leaving in a few hours, she felt a distance. What was the point in pushing for a moment, she thought, if they wouldn’t see each other for two weeks? None, she answered herself as Avie leaned into her knuckles. Mindy glanced over her shoulder as Mark appeared, dumping his bag at the door.

“Alright, I know yesterday we went out for breakfast, but how about I make something?” Mark grinned at her hopefully, rubbing his hands together ready to start.

“Mark, there’s nothing here, I didn’t have time to shop.”

“There can’t just be _nothing_.” Disheartened but not put off, Mark turned to her fridge. “How old are these eggs?”

“They could be chickens by now.”

“Alright, trash for them.” Mark sat them on the counter beside the fridge and Mindy dropped them in the trash after leaving Avie on the couch. “What about this?” Mark asked, waving a pot of yogurt as he further investigated the back of her fridge.

“Edible, for two more days.” Mindy revealed with a smile as Mark celebrated with a low ‘woohoo’.

“Wait - is that bacon?”

“I wouldn’t trust it.” Mindy looked sceptical as Mark interrogated the packet.

“Three days past the date… I mean, it’s not blue or anything.” He looked up, trying to find a degree of assurance in Mindy but she shrugged. Deciding to provide his own assurance he sat it beside the yogurt. “Bacon pact - I’ll have it if you do?”

“Deal.” Mindy nodded. “Besides, I’ve heard that sell by dates and use by dates are really cautious anyway.”

“Exactly.” Mark said as he crouched down to the cupboards on the right and Mindy considered her fridge.

“There’s some fruit in here, apples and I think they’re peaches-” Mindy eyed the three loose apples and the netted container of peaches for signs of decay as Mark’s sharp intake of breath caught her attention. “What? What is it?”

“Potatoes.”

Mindy couldn’t tell if the sudden twist of alarm in Mark’s voice was just his acting or if he really was having a panic about them. She remained still, watching him as he slowly turned to glance over his shoulder, the quirk in his lips betraying his attempt at deadpan disgust.

“You’re an asshole, I was seriously about to throw all of those in the trash for you.” Mindy scolded with a pointed finger as Mark laughed until his eyes crinkled.

“If I’m honest, I hate the bastards, but it’s not a trigger.” Mark stuffed them back into the cupboard and shut the door. “I still haven’t been able to eat them since I got back though - I even e-mailed my parents from the Hermes before we got to Earth to get rid of all the potatoes in the house ‘cause I was so sick of them.”

“Alright, well, being sick of them isn’t a good enough excuse for me to waste good potatoes, I’m sorry.” Mindy shrugged and went back to the small amount of things on the worktop. “Fruit, yogurt and bacon,” She concluded with disappointment, “We should’ve went out.”

“No, no, I got this.” Mark’s confidence received a raised brow of scepticism in return, and when he ducked to grab the potatoes out the cupboard again, Mindy’s dubious look deepened. “I can do this.”

Mark messed his way through cooking breakfast. Mindy couldn’t help herself making comments about how she hoped he left the HAB in a tidier condition, or even that she might need a chisel to get the grime off the worktop. Mark’s replies were somewhat apologetic, but were delivered with a shrug; she let him loose in her kitchen, this was on her. According to Mark, at least.

He had made grits, successfully, followed by a variation of patatas bravas with the potatoes covered in the paprika and oregano that Mindy forgot she had in the back of a cupboard. It was missing eggs, they both admitted, and maybe a few other usually-key ingredients, but they used what they could and the bacon helped a bit. As pots steamed off in Mindy’s sink and the kitchen window letting out the smoke from the few burnt bravas, they sat on her couch showering Mark’s effort with praise and concern.

“These are so good - can you even enjoy these?” Mindy asked, pushing another bit of bacon onto her fork.

“No, this is fine - if it looked like a potato or tasted like, y’know, a raw potato, I would’ve puked, but this is totally fine.”

They were wasting time when it came to doing the dishes. Mindy was sat up on the counter to Mark’s right, drying off the dishes he washed. It wasn’t so much a conversation, but story time with Mark as the colourful narrator. After breakfast Mark had evaluated his mess and decided it was maybe only slightly worse than when he blew up the HAB, and at Mindy’s quick comment of continued disbelief, he launched into the details. Mindy was enthralled, her mind unconsciously letting her hand move in circles as she dried off plates, listening intently to every word. Mark had her giggling at his self depreciation - how _stupid_ he had been to forget basic (advanced) chemistry!

“I probably would’ve done the same thing-”

“No way, remember I asked you about this? And you asked me what your own breath intake was like? You wouldn’t have blown up the HAB.” Mark shook his head into the soppy sink.

“I wasn’t in the situation… I wasn’t thinking life or death, just a casual problem.”

“Mm,” Mark disagreed vaguely, his mind elsewhere as he dunked a mug into the water. “And then,” He started, grinning through his tone of annoyance, “Then there were snakes in the airlock.”

“Snakes in the airlock? On Mars?”

“Yep.”

Mindy remained engrossed, listening in silence until she found a point to ask about or prompt him on. It was an easy back and forth and her legs swung gently when his stories got intense. She found it so much more captivating hearing them this way than seeing the debris scattered in her satellite images. From this view, she had an insight to the experience she never could get before. This way was more vivid, but at least from this side, she didn’t have to deal with the possibility of Mark being hurt. Or worse.

It also helped her understand about just how much humour Mark used to deflect from the situations that could have easily been deadly. Occasionally she shot him a look from where she sat that said ‘remember I saw that’ or ‘remember I saw the rover upside down with the wheels in the air’. He rolled his eyes and reworded his tale to something that looked a little more truthful, or gave a more bleak vision of events.

Packing to leave was quicker than Mindy would have liked. As she locked her door behind them after Mark wished Avie a quick recovery and one last pat, she wondered to herself if he would ever find himself in her apartment again, and if not, if she had really spent her time with him wisely - would she have regretted not playing up the drunken free spirit? She gritted her teeth against the thought, let her keys slip to the depths of her bag and joined Mark to leave her block.

Mark’s amount of humorous stories increased but his interest in telling them didn’t. It felt disconnected, as they did, that the closer they got to the train station the more distance was forcing itself between them. Mindy wasn’t sure if she was helping or hindering the situation by keeping both hands on the wheel, and neither available to be held like Mark had before. At the station, Mindy had Mark as her copilot to point out where to go - it was apparent this wasn’t the first time on a twentyfour hour train journey for Mark, but it was the first time in Houston’s train station for Mindy.

“It’s busier than I would’ve thought.” Mindy mentioned in passing as they wandered into the terminal. She offered to pick up his tickets while he figured out the platform, letting the ticket person be confused.

“Mark Watney?” They repeated, looking dubious.

“Yep.” Mindy assured, spending a tight smile in her aid.

“Got ID?”

“Uh,” Mindy deflated, since she hadn’t counted on being asked for any forms of identification to pick up a train ticket. “Listen, I just have to pick them up for him-”

“I get it, just the assistant? The helper? Boss on your back for rock star Watney?”

“Oh, no, I mean, I did get _asked_ , but I don’t mind -”

“He seems like a chill guy, but I don’t know, gettin’ other people to pick up his tickets.” The man behind the glass made a disapproving face and as much and Mindy wanted to point over her shoulder, she didn’t want to cause a crowd. “Shouldn’t he be here anyway? Train’s leavin' in twenty.”

Mindy quickly swiped the tickets from the desk and found her way back to Mark who had thankfully moved beyond the view of the ticket desks.

“I almost tried to pretend I had your name to get these.” Mindy said as she handed over the small passes. “He didn’t believe me for a second.”

“What, my full name?”

“Yeah, I don’t know why I thought it’d work.” Mark laughed and Mindy smiled ruefully to herself, thinking about how time was ticking as the platform came into view. As Mark dumped his bag at his feet and they took a seat on the cold metal chairs at the platform, the train shuffled in stopping in front of them to let off a stream of passengers hauling luggage. It had been unconscious as they watched the crowds pass to sit closer together, but when the rolling wheels of cases and drabs of passengers’ conversations were gone, Mindy’s right side sat flush with Mark’s left.

“You going?” Mindy asked, not even turning to catch his eye.

“Mm, not yet.” Mark replied, watching cleaning staff run onto the carriages.

“So, how long…?”

“Ten days, I think… or when they sign me off.” Mindy felt Mark shrug, but the additional uncertainty had her turning to look up at him.

“It could be longer?” She couldn’t hide the twisted disappointment and Mark shrugged again, his brow raising with agreement at her reaction.

“I hope not, trust me,” The sincerity in his eyes had a brief tight smile at Mindy’s lips before she looked away, pushing back the burn of tears - the last thing she wanted was to cry. Or maybe that was the second last thing since the thought of him leaving for an indefinite amount of time had her stomach ringing and her hands fidgeting. Mark sensing a dip in the low mood they were sharing, raised an arm over Mindy’s shoulder, tipping her into him. “And who knows what’ll happen now you can’t even keep an eye on me - who’s gonna read my morse rocks?”

“If you start leaving morse rocks about the streets in Chicago, I don’t know if you’ll ever be allowed back.” Mindy supposed, disregarding any hesitation as she leaned her head on his shoulder.

“Train’s leaving, you should get on if you’re going.” The ticket inspector walked by, barely looking at them as he stubbed a cigarette under his foot.

The burn of tears returned but, with months of practising, she managed to hold them back as they stood. She watched Mark grab his bag, throwing the strap over his shoulder and even the most basic of actions seemed so definite, so final. It wasn’t Mars, but it was Chicago, it was ten - or more - days without him and now, as his eyes glanced towards the carriage doors, she was kicking herself for not doing something sooner. Despite that, she couldn’t commit to doing anything now either - he was leaving, what would be the point?

“I should…” Mark trailed off, a thumb pointing over his shoulder, but he made no move, just stood a few feet away watching her as Mindy nodded in agreement. She couldn’t be sure, but she thought he might be considering the same issue - what would be the point? As if he had come to a conclusion, he held his arms out, stepping forward to grab her for a hug. Her face was all too quickly buried against his chest, her palms flat against his back before she could consider anything else. “Thanks.”  
“What for?” She replied, her voice muffled in his hoodie.

“Savin’ me.”

Mindy smiled against his chest. “Thanks for staying alive long enough to get back,” She sighed against him and stepped out of the hug, dropping her hands to her side as he reached for her right. “To me.” She added, a small smirk of admission softened Mark’s eyes so much that Mindy saw a flicker of regret. She tilted her head slightly in askance but whatever Mark had been deliberating over was cut short at a shout from the ticket man from earlier.

“Shit, I gotta - I’ll see you.” Mark stuttered, almost taking her with him with her hand still in his, only dropping it with one foot on the train and his arms stretched out to her. “Soon, I’ll see you soon.”

“See you-” Mindy’s goodbye had been abruptly stopped by the automatic train doors jamming shut. She took a few steps after him, but any sight of him had gone and left her feeling abandoned. What she would’ve given for an extra thirty seconds. Or even just fifteen.

She made her way back to her car mindlessly. She had been focusing on not letting the tears run over her cheeks until she was by herself. Slipping into her parked car that faced the concrete wall of the lot gave her a moment of bland silence to feel as painfully raw as she wanted. This time was different than seeing him possibly hurt, or possibly delayed, or even possibly dead. This time it wasn’t about his chances of living or if he would make it back to the Hermes. This was the simple fact that she had let herself become so heartsick for him that the thought of having him so close for such a short period of time and then so far for longer had her whimpering in drivers seat. She had done nothing to help herself either, which rumbled a quick fury and squeezed at her heart. She could have _done_ something or _said_ something to him and changed this. Maybe he wouldn’t have left, or he wouldn’t have gone for so long or just that he wouldn’t have left not knowing how much he affected her. Affect her he did - she felt stronger and more valuable to her work and herself just from knowing him, just from helping him and the team in his rescue. More than that, every text she received with his name attached sent her spinning, any mention of his name had her eager to talk and, of course, any suggestion or offer from him to spend time with her were the easiest invitations she had ever accepted. He had become such a smooth part of her life that it was hard to pinpoint the moment he became so involved. He helped her with Avie, spoke to her mom, flirted with her openly during an international news broadcast… she had fallen for him too hard, and even though she was sure he felt the same, part of her wondered if it would feel just as deep when he got back.

With almost an hour before she was due in work and only a twenty minute drive, she dried her eyes on the sleeves of her jacket and called her mom from the parking lot.

“Hello stranger.” Her mom started, answering almost instantly.

“Hey,” Mindy replied, disappointed in her attempt to sound bright. “Sorry I haven’t called, things got busy - how’re you?” Her voice felt thick, but it didn’t waver and even though it was clear in her mom’s careful answering that she could tell something was wrong, she didn’t breach it head on.

“I’m fine, how’s Avie? I haven’t heard about him for days.”

“Good,” It was short burst of positivity before she started crumble. Her throat closed as her mouth ran dry and between the struggle for air, the running tears and the choked sob, her mom was no longer playing dumb.

“Mindy, what’s happened?” Her mom’s gentle croon helped enough to roll her sleeves over her thumb and wipe at her eyes again. There were another round of tears dripping down her face when, after another prompt from her mom, she realised that Mark wasn’t here to take her phone and talk for her.

“Nothing, just dropped Mark off at the station,” She sniffed again, and took a deep breath through her mouth, “He’s going back to Chicago for a while.”

“Oh, honey, I’m sorry-”

“S’fine.”

“It’s not fine, Mindy, after all it doesn’t sound like you left on good terms?” Mindy knew it was a prod for information, but this time she obliged.

“No, we did, all good terms, we just didn’t… or I didn’t… _say_ anything.” Her jacket sleeve was still balled in her fist as she gestured hopelessly towards her steering wheel. “Didn’t _do_ anything.” She whispered down the phone, attempting to stave off another round of sobs.

“Mindy, it’s not like he’s away to another planet, it’s just a few states.”

“I know, I know I’m being stupid, but I’m just annoyed and disappointed in myself and I just-” She ended with a sharp disgruntled moan as her mom acted to calm her again.

“I bet he’ll text you soon - he’s on a long train journey, he’ll be bored in five minutes and missing you, just you wait if you’re still looking for proof.”

“I don’t need any more proof, I just didn’t use my time like I should’ve.” Mindy sighed again. With her eyes finally dry and her throat less stressed, she turned on her car and put on the cool air. “I still need to go to work and sit there - and Venkat wants me to submit my work for peer review and I need to do that, and Avie has another appointment soon to make sure his leg is healing and he told me my line manager is annoyed because I keep skipping out on Mark related incidents and-”

“Mindy-”

“What?”

“As your mom, I know I’m too old for this phrase, but, _chill out_ ,” Her mom managed to make her smile and rub a hand over her temple. “You have had way more than just this to deal with before, not that I’m saying your stress isn’t valid, but you can do this.” Her mom was right, again, she had balanced much more than this before with a lot less complaining. “You’re lucky you know Mr Kapoor so well, I’m sure he’s looking out for you.”

“Yeah, I guess.” That was another thing she had to deal with - after snapping at him before about Mark and now with all of this happening, she owed him a real apology - even if she embarrassed herself in the process.

She spent another ten minutes on the phone to her mom, catching her up with Avie and work and straining to cloud details about Mark being with her so much recently. Not to save herself from her mom getting the wrong idea, but more so because thinking back to it would only get her upset again. After she couldn’t hang off from going to work any longer, she promised she would call her mom again that night and left the train station car park, glad to see it in her rearview mirrors.

She made her way to work with her head down. She was aware she was gaining a bit of a famous face even around the offices just for being seen with Mark so much. She couldn’t care less when he was with her, but by herself, she seemed to be the main attraction and the glances and looks didn’t escape her as she made her way to SatCon to sink into her desk and disappear. She managed to organise the pages of her paper and check on the usual parameters she was investigating around Olympus Mons before Venkat slipped in. Mindy started to assume, after about ten minutes, that he wasn’t here to see her at all for once and that he just had some pressing business with Lin in mission support.

Mindy had ducked her head down again and attempted to focus on typing up her conclusions of the images she gathered rather than the pull to apologise to Venkat for being childish as he rounded her desk and sat in her empty neighbours chair.

“I see we’re both still alive and have all our blood, you must’ve made it in on time.”

“I was early, actually, by fifteen minutes - traffic was light.”

“Good, good, so, how’s the paper?” Mindy eyed him briefly, wondering why he wasn’t mentioning Mark, but at the prompt of his raised brows, she went on.

“Alright, just writing out the conclusions from my images, then I gotta write out the introduction - y’know how it is, easier to start with what you got before you write the theory.” Mindy shrugged and typed out the end of her sentence as Venket hummed in agreement.

“How’s the cat?”

“Fine.”

“No lasting damage?”

“Not for him, but my nerves will never be the same again.” Mindy smiled and edged up her glasses over the bridge of her nose as Venkat nodded. “So, can I do something for you?”

“I just wanted to see how you were doing.” Venkat’s smile was brief and, even if he didn’t mean to show it, investigative.

“How much do you know?” Mindy asked, her expression dipping to gloomily unimpressed with his technique.

“That you didn’t ask me where to pick him up from this morning, so he was at yours again.” Venkat shrugged, leaving the dots to connect themselves.

“Nothing happened, and I don’t appreciate you being so gossipy - since when do you care? Or, since when do you have enough time to care?”

“I’ve always cared, but I just wanted to make sure things were fine.”

“Then things are fine.” Mindy said, aware of her cold tone after it left her. Pushing her keyboard away, she spun a quarter right on her chair to face him. “I’m sorry, I’m sorry for way before when I snapped at you, you were right, I was acting stupid, nothing happened, but you were right.”

Her eyes shifted over Venkat’s head while he considered her apology and she considered that she had yet to get over the fact that nothing really did happen.

“Are you alright?”

“Will you stop asking me that, I’m fine, I just wanted to tell you I was sorry and you were right, so, shouldn’t you be gloating right now?” Mindy had turned back to her computer and pressed to take a new line in her documented, but struggled to find something to type about.

“I don’t really feel gloat-y, I might know a bit more and I’m sorry he’s away for a while, but he’ll be back within the month.”

“A month?” She tried not to sound as deeply devastated as the word had cut her, but she supposed to way she cut round to Venkat might have given it away.

“Within _the_ month.” Venkat said again, “And this is already the eighth - but this is also something no one here can overrule, shrink’s orders.”

Mindy nodded and turned back to her screen. She almost forgot he was going back for a reason. She couldn’t really put herself before his health here - he needed the rest and the therapy more than anyone needed her pining.

“If you get your paper in on time, you might get it reviewed just for him coming back - I know a lot of people really eager for it.”

“Seriously?” Mindy asked, a sense of worry creeping in over the quality of her report.

“Yep, so I guess I’ll leave you to it.” Venkat stopped, pushing the chair back into Mindy’s neighbour’s desk. “And I appreciate the apology, I knew all along, you were blind and I’m always right.” Mindy tilted her head, her lips in a tight line as she glared at him walking off with a smug grin on his face. Maybe she deserved that.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> real life is a bitch. 
> 
> new news:  
> i have 3 jobs right now.... and a uni course....and volunteering.... and a dog.
> 
> so. yes. also, what isn't helpful is when you get hooked to a new show and dammit its difficult to watch and write at the same time.  
> also i'm sorry for taking so long but i think part of me kind of doesn't want to finish in case everyone is disappointed in the ending and then what do i do?? other than cry. 
> 
> alsooo  
> i've been thinking about that other au, and i think i'm gonna have to like, rejig it a bit cause i might be in danger of copywriting if i can't figure out how to stick to the book but also not like.. write in book parts. urgh. i'll figure it out!! eventually!!
> 
> what else. oh yeah, i promise i'm gonna write a mark/mindy + the cubs winning thing bc i said i'd do it 100 years ago and i haven't yet, but i'm feeling it. hmmm ye, theres probably a couple of chapters left. i'll definitely be over 30 at least which is annoying cause i was hoping for a round number. oh well. 
> 
> dunno anything else to tell ye!! hope you enjoyed this bit!!


	30. Chapter 30

Deserving of the gloat, or not, she now had a pressing deadline and an extra few hours of editing to do on a still un-finished paper. Her upset over Mark hung over her shoulders, but it wasn’t until she got home that night was she able to tend to it. Her mom had been right, as well, and that within the hour of leaving Mark on the train, she had messages and updates every time he crossed a border or any time he saw something interesting along with blurry photos.

[22:11:18]  
did you see that dog?  
oh my god it had a hat on.  


[22:17:10]  
I can’t decide if the hat was  
better or worse than yours.

Neither of them breached the departure, just ignored it as if it wasn’t an obvious rip. Mark asked about her work, about how long she thought it would take her to produce a paper under her time limit. He asked if he was annoying her with the texts and she told him no. It wasn’t a lie, but every flash of her phone reminded her he was getting further and further away and neither of them were being honest in how they felt. Eventually, Mindy replied that she was leaving to drive home and although the late night radio was on in her car, she felt alone. She hadn’t felt so singular in a while - even from before she met Mark, she couldn’t remember the heavy feeling of isolation that sat around her shoulders and lungs now.

When she got to her apartment, it was dark and empty. Avie meowed from the couch, his bandaged leg causing too much hassle for him to jump down and go to her. She dumped her bag on the floor by the kitchen counter and glanced around her flat before she put the light on. The orange street lamps picked out the angles of her furniture, but the lack of noise was too apparent. Mindy was well aware that Mark was often the life of any room he’s in, but the difference from having him in her space to not was almost too jarring. With a sigh to signal the end of her mope, she flicked on her lights, chucked a glass of water into her stems, and brought out her laptop. She worked on for another hour, rearranging sentences and polishing what she had already before she put herself to bed. She found it difficult not to stop and flop to the couch and feel sorry for herself, but if she moved about enough, forcing herself from one routine to the next, she made it. Even as she flipped the edge of her covers over herself, she brought out her phone, ignoring the notification of five missed messages and called her mom for a quick continuation from where they left off.

Mindy started to settle into bed, shuffling a little lower down below the sheets as the conversation wrapped up and it was then she realised the sheets smelled faintly of Mark’s cologne. It was slight, but it was there and she couldn’t help but take a deep breath of it. Maybe if she had been more on-the-ball, she would’ve washed her sheets, she thought, but between work and her plunging emotional state, she didn’t really blame herself for forgetting. Besides, she reasoned that it wasn’t as if anything had _happened_.

The call to her mom lead her to discover that at least two of the text messages were from her, and when she found the nerve to click onto her inbox, found another was an update from her phone’s service provider. The last two messages, however, were from Mark, telling her to drive safe with two hands on the wheel and not one in someone idiot’s hand, since, turns out, that’s not safe practice. His last text was an imitation of how Mindy should be jumping to pat his ego.

[21:58:13]  
“No way, Mark, you’re not  
an idiot!”  


[22:41:11]  
Was I meant to say that?  


[22:42:33]  
wouldn’t have hurt  


[22:42:59]  
Well I did appreciate it. And you’re  
not an idiot.  


[22:43:31]  
yay. makes a change.

[img183.jpg]open

[22:44:14]  
There’s nothing there, it’s just  
black.  


[22:44:42]  
dammit, i tried to get a picture  
of this weird animal. it was too big  
to be a dog? but dog shaped?  
el chupacabra?  


[22:45:00]  
I think you’re a bit far north  
for chupacabra hunting. I don’t  
think Missouri has cryptids.  


[22:46:35]  
I’m in Kentucky, but according to this  
weird cryptid map i found on google,  
it has the pope lick monster

[22:46:50]  
When was the last time the pope  
visited missouri? That’s a pretty  
specific monster.  


Mindy had only pulled up her own browser on her phone to investigate pope lickings when it started ringing in her hands. Mark’s name appeared at the top and she didn’t think as she swiped to answer.

“You just got me in trouble.”

“I got you in trouble? From five states away?” Mindy asked, her brow raised in scepticism.

“You made me think about a pope being licked under the Gateway Arch and I started laughing, so the guy from the next room on this carriage knocked my door and told me to shut up.”

“And you said?”

“Sorry.”

“And then you thought, ‘I’ll call Mindy because then I can make more noise and annoy the guy more’, right?” Mindy teased.

“Well, I’m not that loud a talker.” Mark said, but the volume in his voice had dropped to just above a murmur causing Mindy to laugh.

“If he comes in to gag you, you’re on your own.”

“He’ll need to buy me dinner first before I’ll let him do that, but I don’t think that’d happen.” The sarcasm in Mark’s voice made Mindy giggle as she bit her lip and wrapped her duvet over her shoulder.

“No?” Mindy asked, still smiling through the joke.

“No, he wasn’t really my type - but, who knows, maybe he has a sparkling personality.”

“I don’t know if you’re off to a good start annoying him like that.” Mindy levelled, her faux apologetic tone making Mark hum in thought.

“Maybe, but I’m good at annoying people into liking me,” Mark paused, waiting for a reaction from Mindy, but she was too confused to say anything. “I just annoyed you into going to dinner with me - I know I annoyed you into taking that plant, and I seriously still can’t believe you said yes to going to that press thing, I mean, looking back on it… I can’t believe you didn’t tell me to get lost.”

Mindy shook her head against her pillow, knowing fine well no one would ever be annoyed to be friends with Mark considering just how extensively agreeable he was. And she knew he knew that too, but she reassured him anyway.

“I wanted to go - but you did lie about dinner all that time ago, you said drinks and then we got kicked out by staff.” She muttered bluntly, before clearing her throat and repeating herself. “But, I did want to go, I’d never been to a press conference before then - and you didn’t annoy me into doing anything, Mark - you did _push_ me, but I’m glad you did.”

Mindy heard a small sharp sigh that she assumed accompanied a small smile. She lifted the phone from her ear to check the time, and with a sigh of her own, opened her mouth to bring an end to the conversation - she had work tomorrow.

“I feel like I’m going in the wrong direction.” Mark said, quickly and quietly, almost in the hope Mindy wouldn’t hear it.

“Ask staff what station you’re at.”

“No,” Mark let out a short laugh and Mindy thought he sounded briefly exasperated, but he continued, explaining a little further. “I mean… I don’t want to go to Chicago right now, I’d rather be in Houston, I was just starting to feel settled and now I’m moving again.”

“You’ll be back soon, right?” More hopeful than reassuring, she almost heard him shrug.

“By the end of the month they told me.”

The end of the month. The date kept changing and she felt worse for it every time. She was aware it was for his sake, his health, but the idea of him being so far for such a while all over again had her stomach twisting.

“Well, you’ll get a good rest then.” She replied, deciding to push some positivity into her tone.

“We’ll see.” Noncommittal, Mark remained quiet for a beat and Mindy took it as her time to leave.

“I gotta go, Mark, I’m working tomorrow-”

“Oh, shit, yeah, I’m sorry-”

“No, don’t worry about it,” A soft smile touched her lips as if he could see it. “I’m glad you called,” She wondered how much she was giving away with those four words. “I’ll text you tomorrow.”

“Put your phone on silent, I wanna send you pictures of pope lickers if I see any.”

“Great, will do.” Her tone monotonous, Mark laughed and she reiterated her goodbyes. “I’ll text you tomorrow though, but I should go.”

It felt like a mask, reiterating her goodbyes again when she would have preferred to stay on the line. The comparison of those old movies where neither party wanted to hang up the phone came to mind, but she wanted to be sensible and not lovestruck. Still, she supposed that Mark wasn’t really taking the lead either, accepting her goodbyes but not saying his.

“It’s almost midnight, I’m up in six and a bit hours.” Mindy said, still looking for the willpower to hang up.

“You’re gonna be so tired, just go.” It was an urge to hang up, but one without responsibility. He didn’t want to hang up, it was in her hands.

“I know, and I’ve got so much to do,” It was an attempt to talk herself into the action and with a scrunch of her weary eyes, she made her decision. “Right, I’m going - I’ll text you tomorrow.”

“You’ve said that three times now.”

“Well, at least you know I’ll do it.”

“Shouldn’t you be hanging up right now?”

“I’m trying but you keep talking to me.” Mindy sighed with a small chuckle; this was getting ridiculous. “I really am hanging up now.”

“Alright,” Mark replied, sounding more accepting of her word. “I should be in Chicago by tomorrow afternoon.”

“Right, well, I’ll be at work.”

“Where else?”

“Night, Mark.”

“Wait, Mindy-”

“What?” She was well aware this could add another half hour onto her call and if she was honest, part of her was hopeful.

“Could you send me a draft of your paper before you submit it? I wanna read it.”

“Oh, really?” Her lips pursed at the thought - now there was another person to impress with her paper. “I don’t know, it’s not that interesting.”

“ _Mindy_ , Olympus Mons could erupt and you’re saying it’s not that interesting?”

“I just mean, I’ll probably make it sound boring.”

“It’s a scientific paper, it’s a specific type of interesting and I wanna read it.”

“Alright, when I finish it, I’ll send you a copy.”

“Thanks, I’ll let you go now - and don’t tell Venkat I kept you up, he’ll never let me back in the building after all the shit I’ve dragged you into.”

“You know, he’s technically my manager, he shouldn’t really know what goes on with me outside of work.”

“Tell him that.” Mark replied, insinuating that he knew as well as Mindy just how much Venkat was privy to, even just through his own observations.

“I won’t be telling anyone anything if I don’t go to sleep.” Mindy said, becoming slightly resentful of the fact she was working tomorrow. “I really need to go now.”

“Yeah, you do.” Mark agreed.

“Right, I’m going, I’ll get you-”

“Tomorrow?”

“Yeah, tomorrow, g’night, Mark.” Mindy replied through a yawn.

“Night Mindy.”

“Night.” She said again, this time taking the phone from her ear to hang up. She set her alarm and set her phone on silent and left it on her bedside table before reaching to click her lamp off. Just as she shuffled down into her sheets, her phone lit up with a notification, bathing her room in a bright white light.

[00:08:13]  
can’t believe you hung up on me.  
devastated.  


[00:08:26]  
i’m kidding, don’t reply to this  
just go to sleep.  


[00:08:35]  
gnight, Mark.  


[00:08:41]  
night  


When Mindy woke and stopped her alarm, she noticed the small text message symbol on the notifications bar of her phone. She elected to ignore it for now, letting herself get up and dressed for her day with a mug of coffee glued to her palm. She shouldn’t have stayed on the phone for all that time last night, but she knew fine well if she had the chance to replay her night she wouldn’t have left the conversation any quicker.

With her cupboards emptier than they were the day before, she didn’t stay in for breakfast after she medicated and fed Avie, who was more than content to lie in the beam of sun that streaked up her sofa. Grabbing her laptop, her bag and her keys, she jumped in her car and swung around to the diner she was at with Mark just two days ago. She had placed her order and was waiting at the end of the bar for her to-go box when the waitress who was pouring her second coffee of the day into a take-out mug struck up a conversation.

“The avocado and eggs are pretty good, right?” Her long dark curls bouncing with the nod of her head.

“Uh, yeah.” Mindy replied, not sure what else to say - she’d only had them one other time. Mindy glanced to her phone in her hand - it was too early for small talk and Mindy never felt that good at it anyway. She had texts to answer.

“You had them on Tuesday, too, right?” The waitress pouted her lip in thought, but Mindy got the impression she was already sure. “When you were with Mark - Mark Watney - that was you - Mindy, isn’t it?”

Mindy had no time to think of the repercussions of telling the truth or for lying, but part of her couldn't be bothered hiding in a lie.

“Yeah, that was me.” Mindy’s nails started to strip the loose rubber from her phone case, not enjoying the cheerful interrogation.

“You guys are cute, it was nice what you did.” The waitress quickly pressed a lid to the cup and handed it over the bar. “He seems like a really nice guy - how long have you two been together? After that one night stand, I hope?” The waitressed beam a grinned and laughed, but Mindy gave her a pursed smile back.

“We’re not-”

“Oh, is that the official line? I’m sorry for prying, you guys must be sick of it.” A bell dinged from the kitchen and the waitress turned to fetched the white box for Mindy before she got to set her right. “Here you go, darlin’, and tell Mark we said thanks for Tuesday - our customer numbers have jumped so high the last couple of days!” The waitress turned to fix up someone else, leaving Mindy to escape before anyone else asked any questions.

She coloured when she got back to her car, but otherwise she managed to shake it off. She had come to terms with what they seemed to look like when they were together, and she knew she was far more preoccupied with what was actually going on between them than what was gossip. Besides, it only helped that the way things were heading, the waitress wouldn’t be wrong for long. Mindy just had to wait for a month before she was sure, though.

She ate her breakfast at her desk after giving it a quick blast in the microwaves in the staff kitchen, with an added slice of toast. When Mindy had fallen into her chair just after nine in the morning, taking a sip of almost-warm coffee, she brought her phone out her pocket for her next attempt at reading those messages.

[01:35:10]  
Img184.jpg open  


[01:35:22]  
tell me that doesn’t look  
like something that’d lick  
a pope to you.

[03:13:59]  
who knew long distance  
trains would be impossible  
to sleep on.

[04:02:48]  
i feel like gino’s cheese  
should be made into shots or pills  
cause i seriously cannot sleep  
on this fucking train.  


[05:48:31]  
i’ve never been so angry  
at a sunrise before.  
i think this must be how  
Johannssen feels every day.

She felt sorry for him, especially as his texts became more abrupt than the last. All Mark ever seemed to do was suffer through one stressful thing to the next. She wanted to save him from them, to take him out of his stresses and let him recover from the overwhelming noise the world projected towards him. Just to protect him, let him breathe. Let him have peace and no press. She wanted to pretend she was thinking about being a support to him, however he needed her, but really, she just missed him. Maybe they hadn’t known each other all that long, and maybe the two overnights at hers pushed her here, but overall she wasn’t surprised at herself for giving up her distance to her emotions. It felt like a sweet breeze. One that told her to stop fighting it, stop ignoring it and just let it settle as a new part of her. It wasn’t normal for people to find dead astronauts alive on other planets. It wasn’t normal to jumpstart a global and interplanetary rescue mission. When people spoke of ‘once in a lifetime opportunities’, Mindy felt that this was hers - that _he_ was hers.

The goodbye at the train station told her plainly that she wasn’t enamoured by his fame or his amazing galactic experience. She loved Mark. The green fingered Cubs fan with the quick wit and warm soul was who she staked her interest in. This wasn’t a sudden realisation, it was an acceptance. She had been ignoring it for days and avoiding it for weeks. It had always been there, really. Just like herself watching over Mark, it had always been there - quiet, but immovable and eventually unearthed.

Mindy sighed, closing her eyes momentarily to let it all wash to an end. Her acceptance of her feelings was no more than a moot point. She had come to this conclusion already, even if it didn’t feel as final as now, but it was too late. She still felt more at ease for the internal harmony, but Mark was gone for a month and there was only so much she could put in a text. Not that she felt it would be even slightly appropriate, after all this fuss and time, to blow her feelings out in a text. She had to wait until he was back. Regardless of the time scale. That was it.

[09:12:45]  
I hope you got some sleep.  
And no, it looks like a leaf-less  
tree with a plastic bag caught  
between the branches. The rips  
do look like a face, I’ll give you that.  


She had set her laptop up on her neighbours empty desk after her daydream, hoping that the act of getting her work out would make her focus - pushing her heart out to make space for her mind. Mindy ended up grateful for the three monitors (her desktop, her neighbours desktop, and her laptop) since having three screens to look at and keep up with meant her mind had little chance to drift. With her daily data being downloaded on her desktop, she could research on her neighbour’s computer and type on her laptop - she might be busy, but she was efficient too.

A few hours had passed when she was interrupted from her stream of work; the clatter of something metallic and a shout of a swear. She turned to see the commotion, but it was nothing more than someone’s microwaved dish being too hot to hold. The interruption, however, brought her out her usual work-induced trance and let her realise how hungry and work-weary she had become.

[10:53:21]  
alright, just cause you’re  
a genius. and sorry to  
disappoint, but no sleep here.  


[10:53:57]  
should be in chicago soon  
though. gonna go home and  
sleep. then go to do something.  
probably.  


[12:44:40]  
well i survived the train  
and maybe being back  
in chicago isn’t so bad.

[12:46:12]  
my dad thought my train came at  
2 so i’m waiting on the kerb  
like i’m 13 and softball  
finished early.

[12:48:10]  
media would love this.  
“mark watney looking  
stupid on a kerb.”  
“mark watney can’t even  
afford a taxi.”  
“remember that young lost  
martian astronaut? This  
is him now…”

Img120.jpg

[12:49:00]  
alright maybe that was mean,  
that old guy was just minding  
his own business. his  
walking stick had flames  
at the bottom, did you  
see that?  


Mindy could only assume that Mark had been picked up after that since it was approaching two in the afternoon and Mark’s kerbside live stream had stopped. She had decided to avoid another incident like the night before and not text him back right now. If he was going home to catch up on the sleep he missed, she didn’t want to interrupt him. She also had an Olympus Mons sized pile of editing and to get through after piecing together another few pages of her paper. As much as she missed him, she still had her work to do and she was sure he would message her when he was up and awake.

She worked on until the cleaning stewards were shooing her out by thrusting a hoover nozzle under her desk and glaring at her. She didn’t want to be here any longer than she had to, but she still felt she had to. She worked until the end of the page she was on before she flicked over and made a skeleton of a plan on the next page for her to start tomorrow. And then pushed to make less of a skeleton for the page after that… and maybe while she was here she could just start properly on that page she just outlined. By the time she was packing up, it was after midnight and she half considered just staying overnight - she would be back in at nine anyway. If Mindy didn’t have Avie to see, she might have been convinced.

When she reached her car she remembered the list of other tasks she had to do such as shopping and washing and vet appointments to make and moms to call… It was only ten in Seattle, she could at least take that off her list while she scooted around the twenty-four hour Walmart for some basics. She was thankful, at least, that the Walmart closest to her was the one open all day, yet embarrassed that it was not her first time in the shop at this time. In fact, due to her hours and ethic, it was the late night staff who recognised her enough to smile at her as she whizzed through the aisles. Tonight, however, she kept her head down and her phone jammed between her ear and shoulder while she chucked the things she could remember she needed into the cart.

“No, I’m fine, I’m… at home.”

“When did you move into a Walmart, sweetie?” Her mom asked bluntly and Mindy sighed.

“I just didn’t have the time to go earlier, I’ve been-”

“Busy, I know, it’s all you ever are these days, busy, busy, busy - when are you taking a holiday?” Her mom’s concerned tone turned to chastising, as if Mindy wasn’t taking good enough care of herself.

“I was just _on_ one, mom, remember?”

“Yeah, I’m still sneezing.” As if to prove a point about being allergic to Avie, her mom sneezed in her ear. “I think that Mr Kapoor is working you too hard.”  
“He’s not _making_ me do anything, he _asked_ if I wanted my paper to be peer reviewed.” That was a white lie - Venkat did ask her about turning her results into a paper, but it wasn’t an offer she could say no to.

“So how was the rest of your day?” Her mom asked, opening the conversation a little wider.

“Just the same, just putting my data together - I got recognised in the diner around from my apartment.”

“Like a real celebrity!” Her mom gasped, far too excited in this for the time of night.

“Not really, just ‘you were here the other day with Mark, weren’t you’, it wasn’t anything major.” Mindy replied factually as she examined a carton of eggs for cracks. “It was strange though, it usually only happens when Mark’s about.”

“You found a volcano, Mindy, you deserve attention.”

“I didn’t-” Mindy finished her rebuttal with a tight sigh. No matter how many times she told her mom she didn’t find a volcano, it always comes back to this. “That’s not why they recognised me, but they did get my name right.”

“Well, I’m not surprised, you’ve been all over the news.”

“Oh, right, I forgot about that.” Mindy frowned as she pushed her cart around to the next aisle, barely stopping as she picked up milk. “Well, anyway, I was just calling to say hi and stuff.”

“You sound better than yesterday,” Her mom said carefully.

“There’s not much I can do about it, he’s away, so what?” Mindy shrugged and almost lost her phone off her shoulder. A quick juggle caught it and she decided just to hold it normally. “I’ll live - besides, I have work to be doing, it’s not like I’m at a loose end.” She was surprised at the amount of certainty in her own voice as she considered the packs of chocolate in front of her. Just because she was feeling sad and looking at chocolate didn’t make her a stereotypical pining loser. Or so she tried to tell herself as she dragged a share pack of m&m’s into her cart.

“I can’t console you if you’re okay with it.”

“There’s nothing to be ‘okay’ about, it’s fine, it’ll… work out.” Mindy said, realising after she said it what she could be insinuating.

“Will it?” Her mom asked, hiding the interest badly.

“I don’t know.” The silence on the other end didn’t sound convinced. “I don’t know! I don’t know, stop looking at me like that, alright, it’s after midnight and I said a stupid sentence, I don’t know what’ll happen.”

“Okay, fine, but you can’t see what look I’m giving you from Houston, that’s impossible.”

“I have satellites, y’know.” Mindy threatened with a smirk.  
The call only lasted until Mindy made it to the check-out when she promised to call her mom after work tomorrow, and not as late as it had been tonight. Mindy left the store as quickly as she could and was glad to be home. Avie jumped up her leg with agility Mindy was surprised to see, to sit on the kitchen counter where he usually wasn’t allowed, but for the few moments as she unpacked the things she bought she let him. After watering her budding stems, she grabbed the bag of the chocolate she bought, a soda, and Avie, and tried to let her brain turn to mush with the tv on the reality channel. Turns out reality tv, no matter how crasse, was not for Mindy and instead she put on an animal documentary and followed a wolf pack for forty minutes until her eyes started to shut. She was woken by her phone buzzing loudly on her table.

[00:57:11]how is it possible  
to sleep from like 2:30  
to 1am and still be tired?  


[00:57:34]  
I’m not a sleep specialist  
but you should probably  
just go back to sleep.  


[00:57:48]  
shouldn’t you be asleep?  


[00:58:01]  
I’m not long home, really.  


[00:58:15]  
coming from someone  
who didn’t stop working  
for like 4 years… you work  
too much.  


[00:58:27]  
I have to, though.  


[12:58:34]  
you don’t have to work  
to midnight when you’re  
not on shift.  


[12:58:45]  
Have you been drafted  
into the HR dept?  


[00:58:56]  
sorry, i’m tired and  
don’t want you overworking  
yourself, you’ve done enough  
of that before.  


Mindy rolled her eyes at that message. It seemed being exhausted and out of sorts made Mark lose his humorous front, or maybe she just didn’t want to admit she was touched that he was concerned over her working hours. She pursed and pulled her lips anyway, trying not to let her smirk grow.  


[01:00:19]  
I’m fine, but thanks for  
worrying.  


[01:01:41]  
well you’re always looking  
after me, i feel like  
someone should tell you  
to stop working so  
much.

[01:02:13]  
Have you been  
calling my mom  
again?  


[01:02:58]  
can’t escape  
from both of us.  


[01:03:20]  
Apparently not.  
Distance means nothing  
when you both have my  
number.  


[01:03:42]  
damn right.  


[01:03:59]  
fuck i just saw the  
time.  


[01:04:11]  
i don’t mean to keep  
you up. again.

[01:04:24]  
it’s okay. but i  
should go to sleep.  


[01:04:36]  
i’m going to the  
pier tomorrow. i’ll  
send you pics.  


[01:05:00]  
i’ll keep my phone  
on me.  


Eventually, Mindy managed to pave a way to goodbyes and goodnights and on her last message, perhaps it was just a flash of assured reciprocation, but she felt brave enough to add an ‘x’ at the end of her text. She didn’t feel brave enough, however, to wait for a reply and promptly set her phone facedown on the bedside table and turned over in her bed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> well i hope you enjoyed the penultimate and 30th chapter. one more chapter to go after this and that's it. all done. forever. also, i spent a full genuine real hour coding this from midnight to 1am and i'm getting up in 5 hours. that's dedication. or it just shows how little free time i have any more.  
> i haven't written the last chapter yet, but i have it planned so hopefully it wont take too long, but as usual, there are updates on my tumblr page.  
> i hope you enjoy it! let me know!


	31. The End

Mindy woke up absurdly early even for her and decided that instead of loitering around her bed, rolling over and wasting her freshly charged phone battery, she would get up and organise herself. She cleaned sheets and made her bed again, got rid of all the loose cat hair she had been ignoring, threw out embarrassingly old food from her cupboards and had a general tidy while a second load of laundry spun to an end. She felt accomplished before she left the apartment and made it to work early. Mindy even managed to smile at the security guards and was wished an impressed ‘good morning’ from them, whereas she was usually vaulting the gates to get in on time.

When she reached her desk she brought her phone out from the depths of her bag along with some papers, notes, and her laptop in a similar three-screen set-up she had yesterday. Her phone was flashing with a notification, but as her thumb ran across the screen to unlock it, she had a quick flashback of ending a text with an ‘x’. Instead of answering it, she grimaced and left it to flash at her like a beacon of embarrassment. Her alertness lasted all morning, boosted by a well-timed mug of coffee and the relief of Venkat passing through without stopping to pester her or to make her pause the pumped up energetic playlist she had found on her phone. She completed a whole section of her paper by late afternoon and celebrated by taking a break with her feet up on her neighbours empty chair and a microwavable pasta box nestled on her lap. She picked up her phone when Claire called to tell her that Avie had a burst of energy and was scooting about her floor, unhindered by broken bones. Claire sent her a video with her laughing in the background after the quick call and only when Mindy had replayed it twice over did she push herself to her other pressing text threads.

[11:34:21]  
everyone’s taking selfies  
at the edge of the pier.

[11:34:40]  
i mean.. if i get caught and  
then there’s 9000 pictures  
of me, an idiot, taking selfies  
at the edge of my own pier.

[11:34:59]  
not that i think i own the  
pier, i just mean i’m not  
exactly a tourist.

[11:35:19]  
and then the media get it  
and its all over about my  
vanity and ‘he just can’t  
get enough of himself’

[11:35:33]  
who am i kidding i literally  
don’t care.

[img188.jpg]  
[img189.jpg]

[11:37:20]  
i made them all promise  
not to tell anyone i was  
in chicago

[img190.jpg]  
[img191.jpg]

[11:38:00]  
they were nice people.  
they wanted to say hi.

[mindy1.mp4]

She clicked on the first picture, finding Mark in his red hoodie grinning with the skyline behind him. She smiled back at it before swiping onto the next one, with Mark’s grin gone and a look of comic concern as he glanced over his shoulder at a small crowd gathering - he had been spotted. The next one was a group shot of him and as many people as could fit in the frame - all with their right hands up, obviously promising not to tell anyone they bumped into him. The last picture was cute, lots of people smiling and laughing, pouting and posing, even if the people around the edges were a little blurry they all looked how people do when they meet Mark; at ease and purely happy. The video, however, was a bit of a surprise. She was glad she turned to volume down on her phone before she saw the ten second clip of twenty strangers shouting ‘Mindy, take a break!’, as Mark laughed and shrugged with a knowing smirk as the wind whipped in the background. She watched it over, replayed it again and pushed it back to watch each person, and Mark, with a soft smile through her bitten lip. She supposed he was right, he didn’t really care what the media thought or how it would be shown, and Mindy was glad for it. From this it seemed that he was trying to live the life he almost didn’t have all the while trying to charm and flirt with her. Mindy could only say he was being all too successful in his cause. She felt a twinge of guilt at being so brisk at the diner that morning. He seemed to be showing her he was all in, but she was publicly denying it.

Mindy’s phone had shown her the most recent message at the bottom of the thread making her scroll up to see the whole thread Mark had sent. When she scrolled to see the first she noticed a text above it that would have been from last night, just after the text she sent with her experimental ‘x’ at the end. Paranoia and a twist of nerves had her checking over her shoulder before she slowly scrolled up.

[01:05:15]  
don’t end texts like that  
when i can’t do anything  
about it.

A harsh tingle jolted across her chest as she sunk in her chair and tapped her phone off her forehead. Part of her had thought they had worked beyond the confusion of emotions while another part asked her why she felt she was confused at all - it was a fairly clear message, Mark was honest and so had she been. All she had done was send an open invitation far too late. She sighed and sat up, not wanting to dwell on it. He could always answer the invitation when he got back, she supposed.

Her good mood wore off eventually and Mindy started to spend more time alone than she had been conscious of over the next few days. Venkat seemed to be short on excuses to turn up and she only heard from him when she emailed him and even then his responses were basic. She had finished the next section of her paper earlier than she had imagined, but the price was that she now felt run down and drained going into her weekend. When Saturday night ticked over to Sunday morning and she was still stuck in the corner of her sofa, she felt negatively reflective. Her mom had been telling her to stop with the late nights, or at least not to be up so early, but she hadn’t listened. Avie had been doing his best to follow her and be a warm ball at her ankles, but even he wasn’t strong enough to shake her from a blue-tinged mood.

Despite the fact that she was aware there was a world beyond her computer screens, Mindy struggled to see it. She also knew it was moving from unconscious exclusion to conscious detachment from society and still refused to do anything about it. She was using her work as a distraction, but without a distraction she was lonely. She had come to terms with being irrevocably interested in Mark, come to terms with them mutually acknowledging it, although non-verbally, but had not come to terms with not being close enough to him to act on it. Her fingers were frozen above the keys on her laptop as she considered that she opened up too late and gave herself a very limited set of options. Of course, her phone hadn’t stopped going since Mark left and she had no trouble keeping the conversations going, but it wasn’t the same. Even when he called, their silences were more palpable than ever. They both had things to say and neither of them knew where to start. It didn’t help when she opened her mouth to tell him how she felt that he would accidentally talk over her and have them both pause and start, trying to guess if it was their turn to talk or not. Mindy didn’t doubt they had probably cut each other off from trying to bring their feelings to light more than once.

The next few days had passed in the exact same manner. They called, they texted, it was flirty but nothing was ever completely honest. They both hid behind jokes and double entendres, acting innocent when all she wished was for him to take a comment seriously and ask if she meant it. She wouldn’t lie to him. Still, they remained somewhat stagnant. Emotions continued, but with nothing being acted on, no smiles seen or touches felt, it all fell apart when she put her phone down and arrived, again, to the real world. She continued to work on her paper, adding paragraphs and images, graphs and gradients to support the theory just as she continued to analyse the new data her satellites returned, glancing at her phone all the while.

It seemed more sure each day that there would in fact be another eruption within her predicted time frame. She shared her data with Venkat who was busy to the point where her reply email was a single exclamation point and his regular NASA embellished automatic signatures. Mindy didn’t mind, he was preparing for a preparation for Ares IV and she was sure this was only the first of many preparations to come. She did start to miss him hanging around her desk and distracting her, but if she was honest to herself she knew she had enough distractions at the minute. While Mindy worked her paper to perfection, kept her eye on Olympus Mons and other Martian hot spots, Mark’s mood had clearly dipped. Her texts were no longer followed by pictures with crowd participation, he had no desire to catch a game at Wrigley’s, and he had started expressing difficulty getting out of bed, even late in the day. Mark said it was only because the therapy was at the beginning and he was having to relive a lot of what had happened, but Mindy’s concern was growing. More so since her phone had been quiet all morning and it was edging into the afternoon before she got anything.

[13:03:30]  
done for another day.  
yay.

[13:03:40]  
Any better today?

[13:04:02]  
i guess. we have some  
goals now. stuff to do  
and bridges to cross.  
  
[img265.jpg]

[13:04:22]  
At the pier again?

[13:04:38]  
yep. i’m bored.

[13:04:52]  
Well… you’re at the pier,  
there’s loads of things  
to do.

Mindy pulled her lip as she waited for a reply, expecting Mark’s usual quick scrawls, but after a few minutes she assumed he had either ran into another crowd or found something else to do. She slipped back into her work, lugging books from under her desk to sprawl them across her keyboard in search of patterns to prove her hypothesis and proposals. She was so involved in completing the next part to a shining polish that her phone had been lost under her papers and the flash of a notification ignored for hours. Mindy woke from her focus when she heard the cleaning crew’s cart trundle along the hallway before the doors were nudged open and a vacuum was wheeled in. She packed up quickly after that, stuffing several scraps of paper between important pages of seven different thousand-page tomes that she piled back under her desk. She saved her work, emailed it to herself, saved it to two usb sticks and shut down her computer for the night - even if she wasn’t feeling the strain of a long day's work too harshly, the computer needed a break as it was starting to whir in distress. She scraped her phone off her desk and slid it into her pocket while she shrugged one arm into her denim jacket before the other. There was a brief ‘you’re working late’ and ‘so are you’ conversation at the door with the cleaner before she stepped over the end of a brush and left him to it. Mindy was approaching security when she fished her phone out her pocket in a delayed realisation that she did see the blue flash and she wasn’t imagining it.

[13:18:11] i miss you.

Mindy didn’t mean to stop still when she read it, or breathe a small smile at the same time a splash of melancholy acted as a reminder of their distance. He had sent that eight hours ago and as her fingers twitched to type a reply, a voice interrupted.

“Earth to Mindy?”

“Wha- sorry, I’m just-”

“Here in body and not in spirit?” Ramone, the security guard asked with a smirk.

“Something like that,” Mindy reached to nudge her glasses up as a silence settled and Ramone raised his brows, prompting her for her pass to beep herself out. “Oh, yeah, I got it, it’s here.”

Grabbing for the zip at the back of her bag, she quickly pressed her pass against the barrier to let it flash green and let her through. “Night, Ramone.”

“See you.”

Her head dropped back down to her phone as she crossed the parking lot, typing out a message, deleting it and trying again. Even when she got to her car, she padded about from one foot to the other until she had finished.

[21:32:24]  
I didn’t know you replied,  
I got caught up. I miss  
you too.

She didn’t wait for a reply as she flung her bag into the passenger seat, turned on her headlamps and headed straight home. On her way, passing under white street lamps, she could only hope he hadn’t taken her silence as purposeful. She bit at her lip, hoping that by the time she was in her apartment she would have a new message, and maybe one with more emotional honesty. When she did get home Avie took priority after she found a note from Claire telling her what medication he had still to get for the night. Avie enjoyed it less than she did, but at least his disgusted meow was his only show of dislike and he had stopped going into moods with her and sentencing himself to brood in a corner for an hour. After he had been suitably cared for and was happy to follow Mindy’s feet around her kitchen floor, she pottered to fix herself some toast and decaf while keeping one eye on her phone that was sitting face up on the counter. She was worried enough to check the thread in case her message never sent, and check it again in case her phone had lost signal - and one more time just to read over the text he sent and relish in a wave of ardor.

She didn’t mean for it to go to her head, but she had been waiting for something blunt to cling to, to tell her the chances she were picturing were not just in her mind, that the hand holding, breakfasts and tight hugs were not misinterpreted, and this was it. It was three words but she had read them enough times over her phone’s battery had halved. Yet, despite the warmth, she was still feeling the need to pine - missing each other just emphasised the distance like everything else had been. And just because she felt she needed a reminder of why he was so far away right now, she switched her news to the Watney Report. It was always on a loop, only injected with new life when he had been spotted somewhere new. The dates ran across the screen as a reporter spoke through the events at each point. Each explanation was accompanied by a short video of different monumental clips, like the first full crew report from the Hermes, the boarding of the crew to the Soyuz, the landing and everything then after that. At the first mention of her name she flinched, almost forgetting she was included in this. At the second mention, she changed the channel, she only felt like she was punishing herself by seeing him but not having him.

Mindy didn’t last much longer in front of the tv that night before her and Avie made their way to bed, Avie curling by her feet as she flicked off the light and set her alarm for the next morning. She didn’t bother going through her phone in case she had missed a message when she knew she hadn’t. It was difficult enough having texting as their only source of communication at the minute, never mind knowing that replies were slowing.

She stopped eyeing her phone as if she was waiting on it exploding the next day and just put the volume of her text tone up a notch. It would sound when she had something and that left her to get on with her work. Mindy managed fine eventually, finding a good pace at adding final touches to her discussion and results section of her paper. The skeleton of the introductory paragraphs did haunt her slightly as they sat stagnant on the computer screen at her empty neighbours desk as a reminder of a mountain only half-conquered. The only thing saving her from a meltdown was the fact that she was still looking at an outline - there were parts there already, thanks to her late nights, early mornings and harsh afternoons of constant writing and editing. On top of that, at the sound of her computer, was the new dump of most recent images of Mons and surrounding areas.

The images did boost her confidence that she was on the right tracks, but at the heightened discolouration of the surface, she wondered if the date she had picked should be sooner. She chewed her lip as she twisted and turned a high resolution print around on her desk, judging it by comparison of different Earth volcanoes before their eruptions. With a heavy sigh, she turned back to the email she was writing to update the different people she had been told to keep in the loop before closing down her email and returning to her lengthy paper. She would be glad when this was over, but she knew she was only lining herself up for a whole different type of anxiety knowing who would be reading it.

By the end of her shift she could safely say that she couldn’t find a reason to edit another word on the latter half of her paper and she only had the start to construct. She was running on schedule for it too, which Venkat was grateful for as he had helpfully reminded her in a short email that people were chasing him up for her work. An email that started with ‘not to add any pressure… but..’ that definitely did add the pressure.

When she left work that night, she passed the security guards talking about holidays and time off and at the mention of tomorrow’s date, she realised today was the two week mark. This had been one of the first time frames of Mark’s time away, but there was clearly no Mark to show for it. She left the building considering what her night could have been like if he had been back in the city tonight - the possibility of driving to the train station to pick him up instead of driving straight home like she was about to was unsettlingly preferable. She grunted in distaste at her imagination and twisted the key in the ignition. She wasn't going to sulk about it tonight, she was just missing him more than she thought she would.

When she got home she fixed Avie up first, sitting him up on the kitchen counter while she counted out his meds.

“And I know you hate this one, but just think - you only have four left and then we're done, okay?” She tried to bargain with him, but he wasn't interested, just sat there watching her with his tail poised in predetermined disgust. Mindy sighed and picked him up with the nightly meds in her pocket and wrestled him on the sofa. They were getting better at it now - Mindy was quicker and Avie had more patience, but he still sprang away from her tonight to reflect on the trauma.

“Fine, be moody, maybe I'll get another cat who appreciates me.” she called over her shoulder to Avie whose big green eyes followed her to her fridge. “And one who isn't as fussy as needing his fish treats _cooled_ like he's royalty, hmm? In my human fridge?” At the sound of a wrapped up plastic bag being crinkled, Avie withdrew from his spot and hopped his way over to her, acting as if the leg was too much to bear. “Oh, goodness, I suppose since now I feel guilty all over again you'll need more than one…”

He licked at her fingers as her other hand slipped the bag back into her fridge and shut the door. “You’re just an actor, aren’t you?” She cooed, but before she could say anything else to him, her phone light up and buzzed itself across the counter-top as her ringtone belted out, giving her a start. She ran a quick hand over Avie’s head before she grabbed her phone.

“Hello?”

“Hey!” Mark’s voice felt empty, the excitement was pushed.

“Hey, how are you?” Mindy softened, stepping from her kitchen and curling herself into the crook of her sofa, her knees up at her chest and her sleeves pulled over her fingers. “I feel like I haven’t spoke to you all day.”

“M’alright, and yeah, I got caught up - therapy stuff.” Mark huffed down the phone, expressing his frustration and weariness at it.

“It’s okay, it’s important.” Mindy replied, her voice almost down to a whisper. “Where are you? Sounds weird in the background.”

“Oh, I’m on the red line and there’s a couple of hyper kids in here… plus trains are noisy in general - I’m gonna get off at Addison, walk over to Wrigley’s while it’s dark, I think.” Mark paused and Mindy stayed quiet, feeling he had something to say that she didn’t want to step on. “It really got me today… the therapy, I mean… I thought I was past getting fucked up by it… guess not.”

“How’ve you been sleeping?” Mindy asked, not sure how else to reassure him.

“I was okay, but it’s bad again - just gotta load up on cheese, right? Now I’m here, I’ve got unlimited free access to as much as I want from Gino, we’re all good.” Mark laughed, but Mindy could tell it didn’t reach his lips nevermind his eyes as it died away as quickly as it came.

“Maybe-”

“Something’s wrong, Mindy.” Mark spoke over her, a quirk of urgency in his tone.

“What do you mean? Are you okay?”

“Yeah, well, no, I mean - there’s something wrong with me... I missed an opportunity… I think.”

“An opportunity? When? In therapy?” Mindy asked, not following Mark at all.

“No, in the train station.” Mark sighed again, and Mindy stayed silent letting him go on. “With you - in Houston - I should’ve kissed you.”

Mindy swallowed hard as her gaze found a thread to pick at on her top. “You think so?”

“I wanted to - I thought it was a bad idea ‘cause I didn’t know how long I’d be away for but… fuck I should’ve.” Mark groaned at the otherside. “I can’t stop thinking about it and I think it’s messing me up, Mindy, I fucked up there.”

“No, I didn’t do anything either and I should’ve-”

“No, I was hesitant, I’m sorry-” Mark’s voice came through in crackles, his phone quickly losing signal.

“Mark, I can’t hear y-”

The line went dead before she could raise her voice to say anything else. She watched helplessly as her phone dulled and locked itself, exhaling the breath she had took for her own admission. She frowned, her lip twisting as her mind worked, deciding if it’d be better to leave them to dwell in what had been said or to do something about it. Part of her wasn’t sure he’d pick up the phone if she called him back, reception or not, so she flicked her thumb across her lock screen and started a new text.

[21:28:43]  
Don’t think it’s a missed  
opportunity, just delayed.  
And don’t let it get in the  
way of your sessions.  
Just come back soon.

[21:32:01] Okay?

[21:36:07] yeah.

Having had enough confidence for one night, she left her phone face down on charge in her lounge and decided that she wasn’t looking at another screen until tomorrow. She forced herself into her nightly routine, Avie and his stiff leg padding beside her. She was in her soft camisole set and her socks when she remembered about her seeds. Or rather, her plant. They had become almost neglected in the buzz of things. With her paper, her usual work load, Avie and his leg, and Mark being only a digital presence, the few green stems had been placed on a back burner. Her glass hovered at the side, slick droplets running over her fingers as her left hand gently prodded through the thin leaves. They had small buds throughout now, which was a development she had missed. She didn’t think it would be long now until they bloomed and she was sure that in the morning she could maybe even discern a colour. Dampening the soil, she left the empty glass with a small clink at the edge of her counter and followed Avie to her room.

Continuing to feel sorry for herself in the morning, she left her flat with the plan of going for breakfast at the diner close to her flat which, although previously ignored, was starting to become a frequented joint. She had placed her order and found a bar seat to swing on while she waited for her food.

“Sorry, honey, you sitting in?” The curly brunette who was almost becoming a familiar face asked, a jug of coffee poised in her hand.

“No, I’m just waiting.” Mindy replied, a small smile at her lips.

“Oh, that’s a shame, there’s a few people who were wanting to talk to you the next time you came in.”

“Talk to me?” Mindy asked, different excuses forming in her head of why anyone would be wanting to talk to her. Surely they would be confusing her with someone else. “I don’t think so-”

“Oh, no, they do, they’ve been in every mornin’ since you came in with Mark - ‘has Mindy been back yet? Have you seen her? What did she order? What did Mark order?” The girl shook her hair that covered the nametag Mindy was trying to discern. “I know I told you that our customer numbers had been up but these guys are relentless! They asked if you stayed close - how would I know!”

“Have they been in today?” Mindy asked, conscious that her breakfast wasn’t ready and she didn’t want to hang around to be ambushed.

“Not yet, sweetie, they’re not usually in until nine, you got time.” Beaming Mindy a grin, she sat a mug in front of her and poured her some coffee. “On me.”

“Thanks.” Mindy gave her a tight smile as the waitress flipped her hair over her shoulder, revealing the small tag saying ‘Rosie’. “Uh, Rosie? What do they look like? I don’t want to be glaring at everyone who comes through the door.”

“Don’t worry, girl, I’ll give you the heads up.” Rosie winked and left her station to fill someone else’s cup.

Mindy sighed into the rising steam, hoping that no journalists or whatever they were, would show up and ruin her day. Not to mention Mark’s, since she was sure the minute he caught wind of this he’d be pissed. With both hands around her mug she kept her head down, but when the door dinged open she couldn’t help but lift her head for a glance as the thought raced through her head to make a run for it, lock her car doors and zoom off to work. Mindy let out a brief sigh of relief when a mother and daughter stepped in and took a booth around the back. When Rosie reappeared with a white box and a smile, Mindy knew she was in the clear.

“Here you go, sweetie, and I’ll tell them the same thing when they turn up - you weren’t here and I know nothin’!”

“That’s great, thank you.” Mindy smiled back, genuinely pleased Rosie was on the same wavelength and left her a grateful tip in the jar by the register. “See you later.”

“Don’t tell me when!” Rosie raised her hand and coffee pot to her ears, pretending not to hear. “I know nothin’!”

The joke put a smile on Mindy’s lips as she left, her car keys dangling in her palm by the keyring around her finger clinking quietly as she crossed the lot to her car. She had reached to the handle of the door as a voice came from over her shoulder.

“‘Scuse me, Miss Park?” The voice, female and polite, had her turning to face them rather than continuing into her car and locking the door like she had imagined herself doing if approached by nosy strangers. “How’s Avocado?”

“Uh-” Mindy, caught too off guard to answer, saw a flicker of a smirk in the short woman who had appeared at the back of her car and was now producing a dictaphone from her pocket. “How’d you-”

“He got hurt, right? But, Mark’s right, that is a good name for a cat.” A slick of malice ran through the woman’s eyes and as Mindy opened her mouth to ask who she was, she was spoke over. “Olivia West, Hush Magazine, so speaking of Mark, how does our Martian hero measure up in the sack? What's beneath his asteroid belt, huh? Out of this world or lacking rocket fuel?"

“W-w-” Mindy gaped as she felt the colour drain out her face from being mortified by the blunt nerve of the journalist.

“And how about Peaches? How did that make you feel? When did you find out he was cheating on you? With someone who looks like you, too, what a blow!”

“That never-”

“Hey, is that a ring?” Mindy followed the journalists eyes to her left hand that held her car keys where the keyring had been hooked around her ring finger. Mindy’s eyes flicked back to the journalist who gasped as her eyes lit up with the thought of a scoop. The flicker of malignant joy uncorked a flash of fury in Mindy.

“No - it’s my _fucking_ car key-” Tossing her white breakfast box into her car via the window, she took a step towards Olivia with a deep enough scowl on her face for Olivia to pace backwards. “Who do you think you are? My business is mine and I don’t appreciate being accosted in a _fucking_ parking lot, I’m pretty sure this is harassment-”

“So, you are with Mark? Since it’s _your_ business?” Olivia pushed the dictaphone towards Mindy as she realised that everything she had said had been recorded and she had already said too much.

One last look, drawn with an amount of furious disgust she was surprised she harboured, Mindy turned on her heels and swung herself into her car, put up the windows and locked the doors. The car was jolted to a start and pushed into reverse as the journalist shouted through the windows.

“Is marriage on the cards then? Why so quick? Are you pregnant? How many weeks? Does Avocado like babies?”

Mindy boiled as she fled the lot, her brows pulled in her rage. As she reached the exit, turning right into the junction, she noticed a flash in her rearview. As she looked up, a long range photographer brought the camera down from his face and before the hurt twisted in her gut, she considered the reverse gear.

Mindy had yet to calm down when she reached the lot in NASA. Slamming her car door shut with enough might to shake the car and grunted and huffed out the rest of the pent energy. She ran her hands through her hair and took a breath, trying to find even an inch of serenity she could settle into. With no such luck, she grabbed her bag and breakfast she was no longer interested in and marched across the lot to shoulder one of the doors open.

“Woah, Mindy, you okay?” Ramone at the gate had his hands up, signalling her to slow down. “You’re a bit ‘raging bull’ - who waved the red?”

“No one, I’m fine.” She said curtly, but the raised brow from Ramone had her tensing her jaw. “Just let me in, I’m not fine, okay? I’m pissed off, but I need to get to my desk so just let me in.”

“Alright, alright, I’ve never seen you like this - even when those journalists were at the door-”

“Yeah, I didn’t know them then.” Mindy replied, not managing to hold back the contempt in her voice.

“Oh? A visit from the press?”

“Something like that.” Mindy hinted from over her shoulder as she stomped off up the escalators and along the corridor to her desk. There were more staff in mission control this morning than usual, checking a huge amount of data from the ISS, but it meant her angry typing and slamming books wouldn’t be noticed too much. Which she reluctantly supposed would be a good thing.

She struggled to concentrate on her paper and found herself busy wondering what type of person would ask questions like those in public, never mind private. Besides, even if Mindy didn’t want to think about it - who was she to ask? They’d only got so far as admitting that they had missed their initial chance and what was so juicy about pining texts? Moping about her apartment like a wet blanket? And didn’t they get enough of a review out of Peaches? Mindy sighed, closing her eyes against the brightness of her screen for a few moments. She hadn’t text Mark yet about it, and part of her was reluctant to - it would only upset him and then both of them would be pissed.

Her head was resting in the middle of a textbook when a ping from her computer notified her of a new email.

Hi Mindy,  
How’s Olivia? Still an asshole?  
I’m guessing she wasn’t after aliens and conspiracies today?  
Although, that magazine is basically a conspiracy in itself;  
who even buys it?  
They only have a few thousand followers on twitter, so I wouldn’t be too worried.  
Nice work claiming harassment though, they won’t be able to use the audio of what you said now in case you sue.  
They’ll probably still release the pictures but, if you’re feeling it, you can sue them for damages later.  
So, chill out. It won’t be that bad. You’ve been through worse unphased.  
Annie.

The lack of a face-to-face intervention from Annie actually made her feel better. If it wasn’t worth any more than a quick e-mail from Annie, then it probably really wasn’t worth getting worked up over. Mindy replied quickly, only a few sentences with one admitting that she swore at the journalist in her rage. Annie’s reply was just complete disregard of Mindy’s ‘viciousness’, telling her she was sure Olivia would lick her wounds and be back on her cloven hooves soon enough. The response ended with Annie asking if she had told Mark yet, if Mindy wanted Annie to do it, or if Mindy was strictly against Mark knowing at the minute. Mindy rolled her lip between her teeth and typed back that she would tell him herself later, and thanking Annie for her advice.

Mindy couldn’t come up with a clear plan of what to do for the rest of the day. She kept at her paper, but didn’t get nearly as far as what she had been wanting. For a change, she hadn’t been inundated with texts and messages asking if any of the newly sprouting rumours were true. Mindy believed this to be either because people had given up asking her for answers or because the person sprouting them wasn’t nearly as popular as she had been thinking and, of course, Annie was completely right.

Still, it left her with a decision to make and as she drove home, eyeing the road off to the diner suspiciously as she went, she wondered if she should call or text. Subtly dropping it into mid conversation on a call could be better for secrecy's sake - if Mark didn’t pick it up, that wasn’t her fault. But, if she text it to him, he would have a record of it to physically read, leaving her a higher chance of being asked about it specifically. With her cheeks flushing at the thought of a text from Mark asking _specifically_ what that journalist asked Mindy about, she decided she should probably just call him.

With Avie pressed against her side for moral support, the tv on low in the background as the sun sunk from her window for another night, she pressed the phone icon next to Mark’s name in the text thread. Her stomach churned with each ring, wondering if maybe she wouldn’t mention it and he’d never find out and really, what was bad about that? The line cracked as he picked up, his rediscovered smile obvious through his tone.

“Hey! How’re things?”

“Not the worst, how’re you?” Mindy replied, noticing her nerves untangling at the sound of his voice.

“Good, good, I got good news today.”

“Oh yeah?” A surge of hope ignited within her as she readjusted herself to sit straighter against her sofa.

“Yeah, I got about, uh, two weeks left and I can come back - doctor Ross says as long as I see through my goals and keep my sleep diary, I’m free.”

“That’s great - but, I thought his name was Flynn?”

“Oh, it is, but he looks too much like Bob Ross, I can’t unsee it - and he keeps saying inspirational things about one step at a time, there’s no looking back now - he’s Bob Ross.” Mindy sighed and rolled her eyes as Mark laughed, making it feel like he wasn’t all that far away at all. It was obvious, too, that his mood had picked up and that only made her feel slightly more on edge after he asked her what she had been up to today.

“Oh, just work,” She replied, already picking at the loose ends of Avie’s fur. “And stuff.”

“Stuff?” Mark asked, fishing for details and Mindy knew she was being difficult.

“Yeah, I met a journalist today, a real one.”

“A real one? As opposed to? A rubber one?”

“No, like, one that appeared in the middle of a parking lot to ask me stuff.”

“What?” Less of a question and more of a demand, Mindy winced at the change in tone.

“Well, it wasn’t that bad.”

“Mindy-”

“Okay, it was pretty bad, they were really out of order and I think they took some pictures but I don’t know I haven’t seen any… and I might have shouted at them a little bit… but that was all.”

“Are you okay? Do you know who it was? Did you get a name, ‘cause I can-”

“Just leave it, Annie already spoke to me about it and really she just sent me an e-mail, so in the scheme of things it’s probably not a big deal.” Mindy quickly reasoned and it seemed to have sated Mark a little who levelled with a sigh on the other side of the call.

“As long as you’re alright.”

“I’m fine, besides, what would you do? It’d only fuel it.”

“Well, I dunno, maybe I’d do something spectacular and take the light off you.”

“Oh, are you jealous I’m getting attention?” Mindy smirked as Mark tried to defend his statement.

“ _No_ , that’s not what I meant, I just meant-”

“That you’re jealous that I might end up more famous than you for buying breakfast.”

“God, you’re right, I’m devastated ‘cause like I told the crew, I want all eyes on me all the time and you’re stealing my limelight, Minds’, stealing it.”

“Sorry I’m thieving your press-time.” Grinning at what appeared to be a nickname.

“Yeah, press time is precious time, that’s my motto,” Mark paused, listening to Mindy laugh.

“Really though, I hope you’re okay - next time anyone shows up like that, don’t say anything to them- and what do you mean you shouted at them?”

“Oh, uh,” Mindy trailed off, not wanting to admit to her apparently loose temper. “Well, they were saying some stuff and I lost it a little and I swore at them and said I’d get them for harassment… not that I would’ve got very far in a harassment suit since I really considered hitting the reverse when I saw her in my rearview.”

“Oh my God… that’s really… jeez, Mindy, I did not expect this from you.” Mark was surprised, but Mindy didn’t mistake him being impressed.

“Yeah, I’m sorry-”

“What happened to ‘I don’t care, it’s just the press, whatever, they can say what they want’?”

“This wasn’t like the last time, they were _really_ rude.”

“I thought I was an idiot enough for two, but I guess you can bat with the best, huh?” Mark said, chuckling, “I mean, forget everything I did - but if you had hit reverse, I’d never get any press time ever again.” Mark thought aloud, still awe in his voice more than anything else.

“This is a kind of grim conversation, I shouldn’t have admitted about the reverse thing, but in all honesty, you have been an idiot enough for two and I’m not aiming for a repeat of today.”

“Have I?” Mark asked, the awe draining.

“Well, just ‘cause you’ve been an idiot doesn’t mean you’re irredeemable,” Mindy shrugged as her fingers returned to picking at Avie’s loose coat. “Even if ninety percent of the times you’ve been an idiot gave me heart attacks.”

“What about the other ten percent?”

“Mm,” Mindy considered for a moment all the time she had struggled with something Mark had done, struggled with her job each time she saw him commit to something life threatening on Mars, each time she struggled to deal with him being on the news for something new and foolish - especially when it was a _who_ and not a _what_ he had done. “A mix of disappointment, concern, and if i’m honest, resentment.”

She pursed her lips, hoping that getting it out now that his actions hadn’t always been easy to accept might make it clearer in the long run - if there was going to be a long run.

“You resented me?” Mark asked, the hurt and surprise clear in his tone.

“Just fifty percent.”

“And the other fifty percent?”

“I resented her, Mark,” Mindy quietly replied, “How could I not?”

“That’s… a lot of percents.”

“I shouldn’t have said anything-” Mindy sighed, a hand raised to her head as she winced in regret. She wasn’t usually this open and this was why; it never went well.

“No, no, stop, it’s okay - I’d rather know,” Mark paused, leaving a silence that Mindy didn’t know how to fill, “I am sorry for it, Mindy, I really do regret it-”

“I know why you did it, I completely understand and I’m sure if it’d been me, I’d have done the same - I didn’t resent that, I resented what she did to you.” Mindy explained, although she could remember the sharp edges of jealousy she had felt at the time, too.

“It set us back though, didn’t it?” Asked Mark bluntly and Mindy felt the walls breaking down.

“Maybe,” She answered after a moment of deliberation as she wondered how honest she should be here, before she realised that this conversation didn’t have time for fainthearted responses. “Yeah, actually, I think it did…”

“Well, two weeks and then I’d really like to find that opportunity I lost.” Mark’s smirk was so easy to pick out in his voice now that she didn’t have to consciously recognise it was there, she could just feel it.

“I don’t want to get my hopes up, Mark - not too much… it could change.” The thought of having a date to see him only for it to be pushed back would feel too raw.

“I’ll be coming home in two weeks whether they’re recommending it or not, trust me.”

“I thought Chicago was your home?”

“I’ve been realigning.”

The call turned lighter as Mark started to fill Mindy in on some of the things he had to complete before he left. She could tell he was more ready to work with these therapies now he was open about it and talking her through how everything was connected. It shaped up to be a mass of interlinking threads that, when slowly pulled together, would create something whole. Mark seemed more optimistic the more he spoke about it, and the more he spoke about it, the more Mindy could understand it. It was centred on his isolation, but specifically how to be okay with being alone again, and how to grow beyond his trauma, his gripping memories, and be comfortable in himself and in his environments again.

“So, that’s it, that’s all I gotta do.” Mark said, blatantly underselling the massive amount of work and effort he had just ran through.

“That’s all, huh?”

“Yeah, shouldn’t take too long, few hours…”

Mindy giggled along with Mark as she felt a surge of soft pride and affection. She was so close to being completely in love with him despite the distance. She had already accepted his flaws - she had seen most of them play out in front of her. And Mark seemed to accept that she wasn’t always so forthcoming with her emotions and often lives in her head, although he didn’t have to exasperate himself to drag her out. Mindy could tell how hard he was working and a small part of her wondered how much of that was for her. She quickly brushed it off in fear of her head getting too big.

“I’ll be back soon,” Mark said, breaking a comfortably warm silence.

“Real soon, coupla’ weeks and then you can stop worrying about how much your cell bill is.”

“I’ve never spoke on the phone so much in my life.” Mindy replied, chuckling.

“Me either, but it’s helped,” Mindy nodded, agreeing with Mark despite being alone in her apartment. “Not as good as real life, though.” Mark supposed.

“Two weeks.” Mindy replied, her voice quiet as she surrendered to the pull of warm hope in her gut.

“Thirteen days, really - oh, no, twelve… it’s after midnight.”

Mindy groaned in response thinking about her early morning and the amount of things she had to do after not being in the mood today.

“Up early for work? How’s that paper? I still want to read it, y’know.”

“Yeah, yeah, you’ll get it - but not if I sleep in, I should really go.” Mindy bargained, reliving the difficulty of the real world over just lounging back and not letting her phone go for the next three hours.

“Alright, goodnight, Minds’ - remember and water those seeds.”

“Oh, y’know, they’re leafy plants now!” She raised her eyes over the back of her sofa to her kitchen window sill, her perfectly green plant stood tall and proud in it’s pot.

“Can you tell what it is yet?”

“No, the petal parts haven’t opened yet, I don’t know what colour they art.”

“Petal parts.” Mark repeat softly, obviously withholding the laughter.

“Shut up, I’m not a whatever you are,” Mindy flapped her hand and closed her eyes as she tried to remember. “Uh, God… I can’t remember… you’re just a really good gardener, but in the morning when my brain works, you’ll be something else, I promise.”

“You’re not wrong, I am a really good gardener, but I’m also something beginning with the letter ‘B’…”

“Botanist! Shit! I’m sorry, I’m tired.” Mindy sighed in disappointment at herself but her smile remained.

“That’s fine, I’ve been called a lot worse, especially beginning with the letter ‘B’.” Mark admitted thoughtfully as Mindy raised her brow and left her sofa to water her plants. “Really though,” Mark continued, “I’ll talk to you tomorrow - and I’ll see you soon, right?”

“Yeah, twelve days.”

“Twelve days… goodnight, Mindy.”

“‘Night, Mark.” Mindy didn’t linger and slid her thumb over the phone down button. If she had, she’d only bring up something else to keep him talking. It was a painful raw she felt every time a conversation ended and the distance spilled out in front of her, but that just made her look forward to the next text or call even more. Wednesday felt a little brighter than yesterday as she woke to her alarm and the first streaks of daylight ebbing through the small slits in her blinds. Avie dropped to the floor as Mindy kicked back her covers and brought herself into her morning routine. She padded about, Avie at her feet, stepping from her drawers and wardrobe, to her bathroom and kitchen, readying herself for a day she knew would be long. She pulled a hair-band over her wrist in the hope that putting up her hair might trigger some sort of unstoppable work ethic once she was sat in front of her computer. Unfortunately, after dragging her books out onto her desk and pulling up her paper, it turned out that tying her hair up made her no more willing to finish it than leaving it down. She sighed and got to work anyway; there was no way around it, she had to start the introduction properly today and she had to be finished by Sunday night.

She found her day was filled with researching different experts and their opinions on general volcano eruptions before finding niches to exploit. She found theories and debates and noted them on scrap paper as she flicked through e-books for references and quotes. She hadn’t finished even her basic notes by the time she couldn’t ignore her empty stomach any longer. She grabbed her phone from her bag on the floor, her microwavable lunch and her empty mug and hopped the few steps up to the break room behind her desk.

[12:25:47]  
http://hush.com/magazine/  
article451/watney/nasa-  
girlfriend-wild-temper/3  
/eeit4rSV39go/g#/  
holy shit. when you  
said you got angry  
i thought you meant like  
a little bit. i’m impressed  
and scared.

[13:10:32]  
I told you I got angry.

Mindy clicked on the link despite the feeling wary of it. The bright pink background led to a title she grit her teeth at. Mindy mouthed the title to herself, ‘Watney’s New Blonde’s Fiery Temper’, and pursed her lips to scroll and see the pictures of herself looking as angry as anyone would be if they had been accosted with questions like she had been. There was one of her looking shocked, her brows raised and colour drained - that was clearly the first round of questions. The next had her pointing at Olivia, her brows pulled and a sneer at her lip. The article continued, using an enlarged shot of her left hand to ponder whether she had been wearing a ring or not. Mindy couldn’t decide what was more embarrassing - the fact that Mark had seen the pictures, or the fact that there was now going to be some sort of rumoured debate over whether or no they were _married_ \- she hadn’t seen him for weeks and now this? She crossed off the page back to the text thread.

[13:11:00]  
guess i can say no to  
that bodyguard Annie  
threatened me with if  
i’ve got you.

[13:13:43]  
Annie threatened you  
with a bodyguard?

[13:14:23]  
think 'aggressive babysitter'  
and you’ll see why it was  
a threat.

Mindy snickered quietly to herself as she understood. Annie hadn’t been in a good mood for long when Mark returned due to Mark’s new lease of life, and it being her job to keep him in line enough to attend conferences, meetings and other press-related necessities. Mindy could only assume it would have been not unlike trying to herd a very distracted cat.

Mark continued their conversation late into the evening with quick snaps of different parts, people and pets of Chicago, while Mindy framed the first paragraph of her introduction. She had started to feel more optimistic, more stable, knowing that there were only two weeks left. Even her mom could tell her mood had picked up after just their hellos on their call that night. When Venkat stopped by her desk the next day to pester her into speeding up, she only rolled her eyes twice.

“Come on, I’m serious-”

“There’s _no_ way Teddy wants to read this - for starters, he surely doesn’t have the time.”

“Fine, don’t believe me, but you better CC him in on the email when you send it to me - _this_ weekend.” Venkat added with a pushed brow.

“But-”

“But you’ve had weeks and you are almost done anyway, all you’re doing is cutting out some editing time and I don’t doubt you’ve been editing as you’re going anyway,” Venkat raised both his brows as Mindy sighed, defeated. “Am I right?”

“Maybe - but still-”

“ _But_ , _still_ , I need it this weekend.” Venkat repeated stubbornly as he turned to leave.

“Sunday, eleven-fifty nine p.m, then?” Mindy raised her brow.

“Try a.m.”

“But, this is _Wednesday_!” Mindy shot back. “I need at least until the pm-”

“Skates on, Mindy, Teddy’s waitin’.” Venkat smiled as he pushed his back against the swing doors and vanished, leaving Mindy feeling panic surge up her like electric sparks. She eyed her screen, looking at the slowly forming second paragraph of her introduction and then down to the time on her computer. It was just after two in the afternoon and with a klaxon ringing in her head with the sudden urgency, she could barely compute how much time she had left, but her conclusion was ‘not much’.

She pulled her chair over to her neighbours desk with her heels, turned on their monitor and brought up the next paragraph on their screen. She rounded off the paragraph she was working on on her own screen before shuffling over to her neighbours desk again. She pulled and pushed herself between the desks in the hope that a bit of kinetic energy would keep her focussed. It worked until she was close to catching flies with how much yawning she was doing, where she threw in the towel and packed a few of her things and left.

When she got home she didn’t have the energy for anything beyond carrying Avie to the bottom of her bed and crawling beneath the sheets. When she plugged her phone into the charger that hung over her bedside table, she noticed the two new texts and missed call notifications.

Missed Call from Mark 21.20:42

[21:23:54]  
i’m assuming no contact  
means you’re being held  
hostage in work.

[23:43:32]  
how late are you working?  
did someone forget to tell  
you that you don’t work  
night shifts anymore?

[23:55:43]  
Sorry, I was still in work.  
Vkat told me they want  
my paper for Sunday, so  
I’m working to finish it.

[23:56:07]  
I’d call but I need to be  
up early tomorrow for work  
and I wouldn’t want to hang  
up so, call tomorrow?

[00:02:43]  
yeah, good idea. good luck!

Mindy twisted her lips as her fingers hovered above the screen of her phone. Mark was obviously awake and she had barely spoke to him all day. Her eyes glanced at the time on the top right of the screen and sighed - she really couldn’t afford the time for the length of conversation she wanted with the level of work she had to do tomorrow. Instead of initiating any other chat, she put her phone face down after setting an alarm and rolled over, screwing her eyes shut for a moment in the hope for sleep to grab her quick so her mind wouldn’t run and her heart wouldn’t crave.

She didn’t feel rested by the morning at all, and truly wanted nothing more than to roll over, sink a little deeper under her blankets and forget about the deadline chasing her down. It wasn’t until Avie started to meow incessantly by her bedside that she reluctantly peeled back her covers and flopped out her bed. Her morning seemed to slip away too quickly even as she started to rush to get herself, Avie and her blossoming plants ready for their day. She dragged her brush through her hair and threw it to her sofa. Mindy left Avie with a soft stroke down his back to eat his breakfast in peace. Slipping her feet into her sneakers, she filled a glass of water and circled the soil of her plants. Mindy spent a few seconds running her fingers over the blossoming flowerheads and noted that they were a faint lilac.

Mindy sped her way to work, still finding it a mystery how she had ran out of time so badly. She had made it in time enough to fill her mug of coffee without having to refill the decanter since the rule was that whoever finished it made it up again - and Mindy didn’t have time for that today. Sticking two slices of bread in the toaster, she allowed herself maybe a little too much of the chocolate spread before she hopped down the stairs to her desk. Quick fingers flashed over the keys to sign herself into her computer and wait for her daily data dump to arrive. Checking it through, Mindy found no cause for any panic and thanked her computer for showing her a Martian landscape that looked ‘normal’ enough for her to dedicate her day to completing her paper rather than detailing the shots her satellites beamed her. Before she started, however, she brought out her phone and typed a very brief text.

[09:11:34] They’re lilac.

She pushed her phone away under the cover of a thick book, pushed her keyboard up towards her screen and spent the next two straight hours touch typing and rearranging quotes from several books that sat under her nose. When she looked up again to find most of the staff starting to make their way to the break room she pushed herself for another hour, bargaining that if she made it to after one o’clock she would probably have more space for herself up in the break room than she would if she stopped now. With this train of thought she managed to continue until just after one o'clock until her stomach won over her willpower and she had to stop. To remind herself that there was more to life that books on volcanoes and space and Mars, she slammed them all shut, grabbed her phone and moved into the break room. She sat with her feet up on the chair opposite her and gazed up at the map of the peninsula with Venkat’s graffiti black line running diagonal through the centre. Mindy smiled ruefully to herself, considering that after all it did, Pathfinder was still sitting up there. Silently telling herself to get a grip for feeling sorry for a machine, she unlocked her phone and decided to be happy that the most important thing on Mars had made it home and had text her back.

[10:51:29]  
they’re not done yet if  
they’re lilac.

[13:18:17]  
I think they’ll be open  
by Saturday.

[13:18:35]  
Are you gonna tell me  
what they are?

Mindy left her phone by the table to go up and buy a sandwich from the counter and a muffin she felt she deserved to go with the decaf coffee she had organised.

[13:23:53]  
nope. you gotta guess.  
but it’ll be easier once  
they’re all open.

She did ask again, but Mark continued to refuse telling her that his will was iron and there was no way she’d break him down on this.

Mindy felt it somewhat ironically typical to be sat under the map that helped them track Mark long distance, while sitting scrolling through pictures he was sending her of the Chicago streets he was walking. She supposed if they had been able to do this while he was up there, it would have been a whole lot easier. Still, it was nice seeing the streets she used to know from her post-graduate study days.

[13:41:34]  
Okay but you know if you  
go left, you have to go buy  
ice cream from dellis.

[13:44:12]  
dellis?

[12:44:52]  
Girr.. girhuhecifrsfr

img343.jpg

Ghirardelli’s?

[13:45:44]  
best ice cream in the city.

[13:47:43]  
what should i get?

[13:48:39]  
espresso chip and black  
cherry vanilla

[13:55:23]  
img344.jpg  
not bad… not the  
best in the city  
though.

Mark’s disagreement fuelled the discussion for the rest of the afternoon, leaving Mindy defensive of Ghirardelli’s while Mark fought on the side of a few different shops he had loved since he was young. Eventually they settled by saying that since Mindy had never been to the places Mark held dear, it wasn’t a fair debate. Still, it lead to an invite that Mindy coloured over before she replied.

[15:34:22]  
well i guess this just  
means we need to  
visit them

[15:35:00]  
I guess we do.

Mark spent the rest of the afternoon texting her pictures of his wanders, letting Mindy follow him around from her desk as she worked. Most of his messages went without a reply as Mindy started to focus and gain speed with her paragraphs. This didn’t deter Mark as he kept her updated anyway, treating their text thread like an autobiographical diary for Mindy to check when she could.

As the Thursday night team started to filter out at the end of their shifts, Mindy remained to type furiously at the midsection of her introduction. She had lost count the times she had pondered why there were so many sections-within-a-section in academic papers and, considering the entire universe, what was the point in this paper anyway? Getting over her existentialism, she continued until the end of the paragraph she had been constructing, when she finally closed her books for another night. She left with some positivity and hope, for once, knowing that come Saturday afternoon she might actually be finished writing which left Sunday morning for editing and she could email it to Venkat in the last second. Or so she mentally planned.

Mindy flicked through the pictures and captions Mark had been sending her as she hopped over the wires of vacuums and bags of trash the cleaning crew were dealing with in the hallways. She left the replying for when she got home, and focused on driving in the dark.

When she did get home she tried to convince herself that eleven wasn’t all that late an hour and that she should really be getting on with her paper. It took only a self-indulgent whine before she reached for her bag and brought out her laptop. She sighed as she opened it and felt it still warm from all her work earlier. Still, she knew she would thank herself if she started editing now so Sunday wouldn’t feel so rushed. Although Mindy might be thankful come Sunday, Avie was bored now and rubbing himself against her to let her know so. Eventually, with a laser pen in her right hand and her left ghosting over keys to correct minor mistakes and phrasing, she smoothly carried on for another hour.

Friday happened much like Thursday. She woke a little earlier and felt a little brighter, which she was thankful for as she shifted from one part of her routine to the next. Mindy was sure her plant had deepened in colour, even from yesterday, and was now a subtle plum. Still, the white fruits that were forming below were throwing her off. Although, she admitted to herself that it didn’t matter what it grew into as she wouldn’t really have much of a clue what it was unless it was blindingly obvious. Giving up on racking her brain for the names of basic flowers, she put the last of her bread in a small box and took it with her in the hope of toasting it when she got to work. When she had slung her bag over her shoulder, put her jacket over her arm and picked up her keys, Avie passed affectionately against her ankles in a fruitless attempt to make Mindy stay.

“Be good, Claire will be in later, okay?” Mindy waited for a reaction and as he shook himself up a bit she took that as an ‘okay’, and locked her door behind her.

She heard her phone ping with two new messages as she drove to work, humming along to that morning’s radio. For the first time in a few weeks she felt more upbeat despite the pressure of work and the distance from Mark. Mindy supposed that that was why she was feeling upbeat; because she could see the end for both of her troubles. However, the deadline for her paper was making her anxious in a way that seeing Mark again soon wasn’t.

Seeing that only one of the messages was from Mark, and the other Venkat, she decided to open Venkat’s first. Mindy didn’t appreciate the empty text with only a small clock emoji and nothing else, obviously a symbol telling her to hurry up. She considered replying, but knew if she did that Venkat would only complain of her abusing her time. He always got antsy near deadlines. The other text from Mark was far softer, saying good morning and wishing her a productive day at work - but not too productive, since he did want her to reply every so often as texting an empty thread felt a little like those video diaries after a while. Mindy replied, asking where he was off to today on his travels.

[09:36:13]  
nowhere good today.  
gino’s tomorrow night  
though.

[09:37:23]  
Yeah?

[09:37:41]  
yeah. i’ll need the cheese.

[09:37:58]  
What for?

Mindy clicked to open all her papers and notes and flicked her books open while Mark replied.

[09:38:30]  
just to sleep.

Mindy’s brow dipped slightly in confusion as she picked her phone up from the desk.

[09:38:46]  
I thought you were  
sleeping better?

[09:38:59]  
oh i do, just won’t  
hurt.

Mindy left her phone under her computer screen after that, knowing that she was on a tight schedule and, unfortunately, talking about cheese wasn’t going to get her to the end of her paper any quicker. She rolled her shoulders, let her neck relax and stretched her fingers over her keys before she started typing where she left off from. She had already convinced herself that the end of the introduction would be the easiest part, and part of her felt right as she approached it, despite writing the whole paper back to front. Mindy felt justified for naming it as the easiest knowing she only needed to summarise the rest of the paper briefly in a few key sentences and that would be her finished.

Finished.

It felt so final as Mindy sounded it out in her head and her fingers paused. She had worked for weeks on this, to the point where it started to feel like months. It was fortunate that she had started with a body of work already done and all she had to do was adapt it, but approaching the end of something that could get her real recognition for something that wouldn’t be brought up on mainstream gossip tv was exciting her. Yet, at the same time, finishing it would only mean she would have to move onto the next thing and maybe she was a little worried about that. Or, more honestly, her only major thing to be anxious about now, good or bad, was Mark. Her lips pursed as her mind wandered. Maybe they’d really be together… maybe she was in line for a date soon enough. Maybe she’d get a little more than one of those hugs. Not, she supposed, if she was still sitting trying to work on this paper.

She worked until the cleaning crew sparked her from her daze. Mindy had been typing on autopilot for the last while and had realised after a brief look over that her last few sentences were phrased as if Avie had taken the keyboard. She grunted quietly in displeasure and saved it all despite the mistakes and shut her computer down - she was within reach of the end, but this setting wasn’t helping any more. The emptiness of the room, the hum of vacuums and plastic coated wires hitting off desk chairs only told her she was out of time for the night. It also told her that if she wanted to really finish this off, she needed to go home and find one last kick of motivation.

Mindy’s kick of motivation was found in a gift for herself she thought she deserved; a large mocha, a coffee cream donut and a lemon muffin from a twentyfour hour coffee house. She had had a hard few weeks and she deserved some fun to herself if it was going to be a long night. When she got home she brought Avie up with her to her couch, not giving him a choice to not be moral support for the end of her paper, and sat her laptop in front of her. The cursor flashed in mockery as her mind went blank. Mindy had never had this trouble when she wrote her conclusion. Her physical last words of the end of her paper did not give her as much trouble as the last six lines of her introduction were giving her now.

“What do I say? I’ve already written it all, I just need to sum everything up… but, I don’t know what I’ve even done.” She flicked through the hundreds of pages of her paper, trying to remember the absolute key points that she had been talking about, but everything seemed to blend.

“ _Fuck_ ” She whispered to herself, getting more annoyed at her inability to just spill out what she was thinking. It was all clear in her mind in a murky sort of way. She could _feel_ what she wanted to say, but her sense wouldn’t form into words and she was at a frustrated loss. “Time for a pen-”

Mindy stretched off her couch to her bag that sat under the coffee table while trying not to upset Avie’s position. Dragging her bag back towards her with the tips of her fingers, she brought it up to her side, took out a pen and a scrap page of notes she no longer needed and bullet pointed her paragraph points.

“One step at a time, even at the end, right Avie?” Avie replied with nothing, just slightly adjusting to lean against Mindy’s side more.

Mindy jotted her way through the pages, bullet pointing every part she had found important. It was tedious, but helpful. She managed to signpost her way through the paper, finding parts she had even forgot she had written and parts she was even impressed by for sounding so eloquent. When she had reached her appendices, she scrolled back to where she was to finish off with her reworded her bullet points into real sentences, cutting out the slightly less important parts and beefing up the stronger sections. She finished a sentence and then hovered over the keys, rereading the last few words over again and wondering what came next when she realised that nothing came next. That was it. Finished.

“I think that was it, Avie.” Avie turned over his shoulder to look at her and sniff at the hand she raised to draw over the front of his chest. “I think we can go to bed now.”

Avie pushed off the couch and gracefully jumped down to the floor, his plastered leg a blur of blue as he did so. Before Mindy turned off the laptop she attached her document to an email and sent it to herself twice over, just in case. By the time she got to bed, she pulled her charger cable over and plugged her phone in and clicked through to her messages.

[01:22:03]  
I finished my paper but  
I don’t have your e-mail  
address if you still want  
it?

Mindy put her phone on her bedside table and started to settling under the duvet as Avie climbed to the bottom of her bed. She wasn’t expecting a reply, but her phone colouring her room in a dull white wasn’t something she could ignore, even if she wanted to.

[01:22:47]  
yesssss!!!! knew you’d  
kill it!!! and of course i  
still want to see it!

[01:23:14]  
mwat_wat@gmail.com

[01:23:35]  
I haven’t edited it all  
yet, so this is a warning  
not to judge.

[01:23:51]  
i would never.

With a small smile, Mindy quickly forwarded the email she had sent to herself to Mark, leaving a small message at the top that said ‘No judging, just reading’ with her initial underneath followed by an x she pretended not to be bothered by.

[01:24:43]  
Alright, you should have  
it. It’s kinda long so don’t  
start it now, wait until  
tomorrow.

Mindy waited a few moments and with no instant reply, she put her phone back down and decided to fight the growing burn of tired eyes and wait for a reply.

[01:26:30]  
where’s the snazzy  
title? Or the fun  
acknowledgements?

[01:26:58]  
Well I thought the  
unsnazzy title would  
be more appropriate.  
And that  
acknowledgements  
might be… unprofesh?

[01:27:21]  
nah, gives it  
personality.

[01:27:52]  
I’ll have a think tomorrow.  
Need to spend tomorrow  
editing anyway.

[01:28:25]  
i bet venk cries  
for real this time.

[01:29:18]  
I hope not.

[01:29:30]  
guess we’ll need to  
wait and see. night  
mindy.

[01:29:43]  
Night Mark.

[01:29:55]  
nine days.

[01:29:55]  
Nine days x

[01:30:12]  
i’m gonna have to do  
something about  
those x’s.

[01:30:30]  
You’ve got 9  
days to plan.  
Night Mark.

She rolled over, pulling her duvet up to hide the flush she could feel in her cheeks and the grin she couldn’t stop. She dreamed of nonsense, but it was pleasant, she remembered that much. She woke bleary eyed and tired, but since it was Saturday she let herself lounge around her apartment, carrying her laptop with her as she made breakfast for her and Avie.

“You can help me edit, okay?” Mindy said to Avie who was waiting patiently on the floor for Mindy to finish putting his breakfast together. “I’ll read you a sentence and you can tell me what you think of it.” Mindy ran a hand over his head as she put his dish down on his mat.

“From here, this paper will conduct a literary review of previous research in this area and use this to accurately estimate the time frame of eruption of Olympus Mons… too long? It feels… wordy…” Mindy picked at the structure, writing it over a few times as her eggs boiled and coffee dripped. She got all the way to midday before she had to push herself with different tactics. Bringing out the lemon muffin she bought last night, she allowed herself a quarter per paragraph edited. It was difficult since the aroma was overpowering, but it worked well enough to even push herself to edit two paragraphs extra before she had the last piece. When she had finished editing her discussion section completely, she gave herself a break.

[10:23:38]  
oh my god. this  
is too smart for me.

[13:34:11]  
Don’t say you can’t  
make sense of it! I’ll  
need to write it again.

Mindy was now in a small puddle of worry over whether or not she had been using terms and phrasing she hadn’t properly explained or even just that her paper sounded like she had hit a thesaurus.

[13:40:10]  
no no! it’s great and  
i’m only on page 16.

[13:41:32] Are you sure?

[13:41:44] 100%

She was pleased to hear it and could feel a layer of relief lift from her heart. Mark wouldn’t be one to tell her if something was good when it wasn’t, or not be honest with her. It also helped that if he could understand and (so far) agree with it, she could be sure that the general response would most likely be positive. Which was all she wanted.

Five hours went by before she had stopped editing for the afternoon. She had read through every word, but admittedly skimmed a little on the sections she had edited previously. Overall, she was pleased with it and had brushed off some of the inferiority and anxiety she felt of submitting a piece on volcanicity when her background had nothing to do with anything like that. The support she had had from her mom, Mark and even Venkat at times had been far more useful than she realised. The check-ins and the nudges to ask how it was going helped to energise her to the next part, even when she didn’t feel that enthused with it. Reflecting on the support had her thinking that Mark was right - an acknowledgements section should be included at the least. Then again, naming names might land her in a lot more trouble than she wanted to deal with.

‘To Mark’, She thought to herself, ‘Thanks for showing me the outside world when I couldn’t leave my desk… _no_.’

She rolled her eyes at herself while she fiddled with a grilled cheese for dinner.

‘To my mother, please stop asking me to go to bed early when I have four hundred pages of detective work on rocks to write about.’ Her lips twitched to a smirk as she flipped her sandwich and poured herself a glass of milk.

‘To my mom, sorry I hadn’t been calling so much, but I think this explains why.’ Mindy’s head tilted in thought, wondering if that would be nice enough or too cheeky. In the end, she took her sandwich off the heat and gave up. It was something to think about, but right now she needed to stop thinking and watch something numbing on tv and just appreciate not being at her desk for the first Saturday in a while. Eventually noticing her phone blinking from the corner of her table, she picked it up to find a few unanswered messages from her mom and Mark.

[12:10:33]  
Hiy Honey, i’m out for  
dinner 2nite W girlies  
so dont call until  
tomrw.. momxx

[13:43:04]  
doesnt mean u cant  
call now…

[13:58:28]  
.

[14:12:21]  
.

 

Her mom was clearly after attention, but it was just after six and there was a chance that if Mindy called now, she’d be shouted at for calling while her mom was trying to get ready, and no doubt her mom would be running late as well.

[18:33:12]  
Sorry! Was editing all  
day, call tomorrow.

[18:33:45] k

Mindy squinted at the single ‘k’, trying to figure out the tone behind it. Deciding she couldn’t do anything about the tone until tomorrow, she refrained from spending any worry. She clicked back to all her threads and noticed that beyond her Claire and Mark, the rest of her social life had lost life signs a long time ago. Worse so if she considered that the next eight threads were long-ignored messages from people looking for information on her involvement with Mark. Mindy didn’t spend any worry over that either; it didn’t affect her, she didn’t really care all that much. Clicking through to the messages from Mark, her mom sent her another that buzzed in from the top of her phone saying she was heading out, as if her mom had forgot she had already mentioned it. From that, Mindy knew her mom would’ve been in a hectic rush for the last hour at least.

[12:48:32]  
look  
[img324.jpg]  
[img325.jpg]  
[img326.jpg]  
eggs back

The three pictures showed the white and ginger cat on a back fence and then lounging on a patio before resting at Mark’s sneakers.

[15:23:15]  
he’s still an asshole. i  
tried to tell him, i’m  
interplanetary royalty  
but he’s clawing my dad’s  
maple and burning  
the yard

[15:53:44]  
he’s not listening

Another few pictures had followed Mark’s last message two hours ago, showing claw marks on a tree trunk and yellow patches on an otherwise pristine lawn. The last picture was of Egg grooming a paw while Mark’s upturned palm in the bottom right of the frame suggested his clear frustration.

[18:32:11]  
How many times?  
He’s a cat. He does  
what he wants.

[18:32:43]  
And interplanetary  
royalty?

[18:34:23]  
did you forget i  
fought mars and  
won?

[18:35:00]  
Still unsure how this  
makes you royal.

[18:35:31]  
i’m the king of mars.

[18:36:32]  
Self proclaimed King of  
Mars, I see.

[18:36:50]  
what’s wrong with that?

[18:37:13]  
Nothing, just sure it  
means people can just  
ignore it.

[18:38:07]  
hm. maybe that’s why  
no one’s been calling  
me ‘majesty’.

[18:39:01]  
...yeah.. that’ll be it.

[18:39:41] so other than  
dismissing my royalty,  
what’s the plan for tonight?

[18:39:59]  
wild night out or  
quiet night in?

[18:40:25]  
quiet night in, polish  
off some editing.

[18:40:59]  
i’d call you but i’m  
on my way to ginos.  
and this taxi driver is  
convinced he knows  
my mom.

[18:41:20]  
Voice1.mp3

[18:41:33]  
can you hear that?

Mindy played the recording and couldn’t help but laugh at the insistence of the driver of knowing Mark’s mom’s face while his mom denied it. Mindy was sure, too, she could hear a small sigh of exasperation from Mark at the last second.

[18:42:02]  
Jealous?

[18:42:24]  
how bad is it if i say  
yes? i’m sitting right  
here.

[18:42:54]  
Tell him you’re the King  
of Mars, see what happens.

[18:43:20]  
i’m trying to go for  
dinner, not a mental  
health assessment.  
i’m bored of those.  
aced almost all of em.

Mindy giggled at the thought, but rolled her eyes at his depreciating joke. The ache of missing him echoed through her chest, but it was only over a week now and she was working on convincing herself she could last a week. She messaged him again, telling him she hoped he enjoyed the time with his family, but her break was nearing it’s end and her laptop was calling. Mindy appreciated his reminder that her paper was completed to a level rarely met by established researchers, nevermind rushed satellite managers. Her insides brushed with warmth as she scrolled through their text thread, realising just how comfortable and easy everything was. How natural it felt to know when he got back there was a real promise of development. She felt herself bristle with excitement and fervor at the thought, so much that it fuelled her editing for a further three hours until her phone buzzed again.

[22:01:43]  
fuck i wish i could  
send you this pizza

[22:02:12]  
no wait, i just wish  
i could take you here

[22:02:32]  
i’m pretty sure gino  
would love you more  
than me.

[22:04:56]  
I doubt that. How  
was it?

[22:05:37]  
it wouldn’t make  
sense if he didn’t.

[22:05:55]  
fucking amazing as  
per. it’ll definitely do  
the job.

[22:06:12]  
job?

[22:06:39]  
yeah it’ll get me  
to sleep.

Mindy didn’t question what he meant, but the reply irked her as it did the last time he mentioned it. It made her wonder if he was having trouble sleeping again despite the clear improvement in his mood. She didn’t want to ask again, but she felt it was his fault for making her care for him so much that he worried her anyway.

[22:07:45]  
Is that a job that  
needs doing?

[22:08:03]  
are you worrying  
about me?

[22:08:32]  
Don’t point that out  
like it’s news when  
we know it’s not.

[22:09:19]  
okay well i’m aiming  
to stop making you worry.  
and no, it doesn’t need  
done but i’ll appreciate  
the solid 8 hours anyway.

[22:10:00]  
texting is boring.  
i miss your voice.

Mindy had only finished reading the last message when her phone lit up with an incoming call from Mark. She briefly eyed her laptop and thought of the editing she had to finish before tomorrow and how tomorrow was becoming busier by the second. She shunted the idea of working on her paper anymore tonight to the back of her mind - at this time, and with this level of distraction in front of her she was half surprised it even managed to cross her mind.

“Hey-” A booming tannoy cut over Mark’s hello as Mindy held the phone away from her ear until it finished. “What the hell was that?” She asked, slightly deafened.

“Oh, well, my dad called a cab from Gino’s and asked for it under ‘Watney’ because he’s a genius, so we’re walking to the train station to pick up a cab from the rank instead.” Mark explained sarcastically.

“Surely using your name for a cab-”

“‘Watney’s at Gino’s’ is practically a code-phrase for the press to assemble, hence the walk to pick a different cab.”

“Well, you did say you wanted to see Chicago at night.”

Another tannoy yelled in the background and Mark quietly apologised after it.

“Turns out there aren’t a lot of taxi’s going on a Saturday night in Chicago - who knew?”

“That is a surprise.” Mindy added, mirroring Mark’s tone just as another passing announcement spoke over him. “I can’t hear you, I can call you tomorrow if that’s easier?”

“-Fucking nightmare, I’m sorry-”

“Don’t be, it was still nice to hear from you, even if it was under some automated woman’s voice.”

“Hey, um, listen-” Mark started and Mindy adjusted the phone to her ear. “I've been thinking about that plan.”

“What plan?”

“To do something about those little x’s you keep sending me.”

“Oh, that plan.” Mindy blushed, realising that that was a thing she really said to him in a moment where her filter had been mysteriously turned off.

“Yeah, that plan - so, I was thinking when I get back, I'm pretty sure you kinda owe me a rematch from the last time.”

“Do I?” Mindy asked, pushing innocence but the beginning of a flushed smirk tugged at her lips. “I’m sure that bet we had on about the Cubs and the Mariners is still ongoing and still on par.”

“On par? What games are you watching?” Mark laughed and Mindy bit her lip, trying not to giggle at his taunt. “Anyway, I think you owe me a rematch.”

“A rematch.” Sounding it out, Mindy thought it over and wondered if this was as good as it would get for her right now. “Well, you owe me a rematch but I'd really like to call it a date.” Mark’s admission had Mindy nodding in silence with her lips pursed to try and keep all the butterflies that just churned inside her from escaping. “If you want?”

“Yeah, let's call it a date.”

“Great, awesome,” The grin was clear in Mark’s voice as another call for a departing train cut in. “I should go before I give you a headache from a thousand miles away.”

“Alright, I hope you get a cab soon.” Mindy said, her fingers trailing through Avie’s fur as she smiled. “I’ll see you this time next week?”

“Yeah, and we’ll be going straight out - don’t know where yet, but somewhere.”

Mindy couldn’t stop beaming for the rest of the call where Mark promised to come up with a more detailed idea of what they would get up to and text her where to be and when. It wasn’t long before they hung up and resumed texting for another short while before Mindy’s eyes were closing as she tapped out texts. Sending a sentence full of nonsense was enough for Mark to try and shoo her away from her phone and into her bed. Still, the thread didn’t finish without either of them reminding the other they were missed. When Mindy’s alarm rang out at seven she considered ignoring it until the twisting positivity of chimes in a major key was too much to bear. She flicked through some recent news headlines before finding enough willpower to slip out of bed and get dressed. In two minds over staying home and not, she had breakfast in front of the tv, flicking through channels as she decided if she would be more productive at home or somewhere else. For a few minutes she flirted with the idea of sitting in a coffee shop, but the thought of paying for a coffee she could get for free ultimately decided for her. She could always rely on the air of productivity that seemed to rise from her work desk. With the decision made, she packed her bag but was in no rush and spent a while on the floor playing with Avie who had had a rush of energy. The blue cast was no longer a hindrance as he rolled about under the knot of fabric on a string Mindy waved about for him.

“Just think Avie,” Mindy said to him while he was wriggling on his back, her hand scratching at his chest. “Next week, you’ll be free of that thing - hopefully.”

While he lay there, Mindy inspected it. It was starting to fray at the edges where he had been licking it before he had been caught and despite his best effort to clean it it was looking a bit mucky, but otherwise she could make an educated guess to say it seemed to be doing okay. If Avie could put his weight on it and not meow in discomfort - which he had been managing for about a week - Mindy assumed it was clearly on the mend.

After Avie had grown tired of chasing his toys and Mindy couldn’t coax him even for affection, she decided it was probably a good enough time as any to leave for her desk. She was glad that the end really was in sight for her paper and as it was only after eight on a Sunday morning, Venkat’s pushed deadline for ‘a.m’ on Sunday seemed not only possible, but highly likely.

She made a stop on her way into work at the diner, grateful for the smirry of rain that she could keep her hood up on her jacket as she tried to sneak in. She spotted Rosie serving behind the counter who gave her an open wave - something Mindy took to mean she was safe to come in. While she waited on her order, Mindy was relieved to hear no journalists, even the ones she was unfavourable familiar with, had been making appearances. This news set her up for a pleasant drive to work in the strengthening rain, giving her the hope that maybe everyone had lost interest in her and realised she wasn’t all that interesting or dramatic or in need of _press_.

Arriving at NASA, she was only accosted by the security guards who moaned at her for working when she wasn’t even scheduled to be on. She stood and fought with them for a while, swiping her card to open the security gates while they acted as bollards at the other side, blocking her from going through. Eventually, she pushed her way past, ruining the game and leaving them to be bored.

Mindy set herself up in the quiet of an empty SatCon. For company she had; the soft NASA branding on computer screensavers, the view of the ISS on the big screen above all the desks, and the tonal drone of air con. For concentration, she fished her earphones out her bag and picked an instrumental playlist so she wouldn’t catch herself singing rather than editing. Mindy had just about settled when she started to eye her phone and the time, making her consider that she could probably text Mark by now. She thought about leaving it for a while, but barely finished the thought when she picked up her phone and drafted a quick text, asking if the cheese had worked. With the need to chat sated for now, she put her phone down and started where she left off last night, reading through each sentence and making sure it was coherent.

It was pleasing to find that there wasn’t much to be corrected, and even what she had been editing had been sentence structure and fairly superfluous. Still, she found herself running out of morning and had yet to touch the end of her discussion and start her conclusions. Instead of panicking, she shot an email to Venkat, asking just exactly how strict that deadline was.

Not very. But I don’t know what you’re  
editing since I’ve heard it’s the best  
paper to ever grace the Earth.  
Also don’t know how Mark got a  
copy before I did?

The email ended with all of Venkat’s signatures and achievements as Mindy felt like she had been caught over something that wasn’t against any set rules.

I was hacked? but they only got  
the unedited version…. Can I send  
you the good version this afternoon?

Not to be rude but why would anyone  
hack for a paper on a martian volcano?  
And yeah, Teddy’s on holiday this weekend  
so he won’t see it until tomorrow anyway.  
But I want it by 5pm. Or else.

Aliens? Martian Squirrels? Martian child slave ring?  
Whatever the Martian- Conspiracy-of-the-Day is?  
5pm? Then why the rush all before? I feel used…

You feel worked. Which is something you do.  
At your job.

Mindy decided against another reply that might have been a wordy version of rolled eyes. She supposed he was right; work can be pressured and realistically, this was no way near as heavy as what she had felt when Mark was on Mars and she was mostly living in SatCon.

Mindy sighed, realising that the rush to finish didn’t really exist anymore and she could be doing with a break. She slid her phone into her pocket and kept her earphones in so as not to break the song’s soft effect. Pushing away from her desk, she twirled on her chair until it pointed towards the break room where she got up and poured a generous coffee. Mindy hovered around the coffee machine, leaning against the table it sat on and let her gaze settle on the Arcadia Planitia map with Venkat’s black line running across it. It was easily her favourite piece in NASA, or more so most precious. It was such a pinnacle moment in her life, and Mark’s, that sometimes she could hardly embrace the feelings she had for it without getting a little overwhelmed. She wandered over to it, her eyes picking out all the dips and grooves of ancient and recent lava flows Mark had driven across. Taking a sip from her mug disconnected her from wandering memories and pushed her back to her desk, checking her phone on the way.

[10:47:27]  
mostly, but external  
influences ruined it a  
bit.

[12:04:32]  
How’s that?

[12:06:50]  
foxes are noisy fucks.  
handed in your paper?

[12:07:31]  
Nope. Venkat gave me to  
5pm today so productivity  
has slowed a bit.

[12:08:02]  
But hey, turns out he  
already knows all about  
it.... somehow...

[12:08:28]  
maybe you got hacked?  
cause i said nothing.

[12:08:48]  
That’s what I said.  
Funny how he didn’t  
believe me and sounded  
a little exasperated.

Mark replied to explain that Venkat was always exasperated, regardless of the situation or the person. Mindy had to agree, remembering the late nights where he had flopped beside her desk and read over messages from the hacked rover or discussed images and morse code rocks, ‘Is this rock a dot or a line?’ ‘It’s neither, it’s a rock.’, only for him to pull a face and breathe deep. Eventually, Mindy had to leave Mark’s conversation against her will, but time was ticking and she couldn’t miss an extended deadline. She set back to it, her phone tidied away in a drawer with the wire for her earphones running out the corner. She ran her eyes over each line, picking words apart and smoothly stitching them together. Each time she flicked her eyes back to her results section she felt such a thankful glow of relief that she had spent the time to perfect it early on so she didn’t have to go through the numbers and the figures over and over.

At four, she ran out of things to edit. Her right hand rested over the mouse as her paper scrolled up and down on the screen in front of her. The only thing that was missing was the acknowledgements section she had been considering. Thoughtfully biting her lip, she opened up another document on her usb. While she had been messaging Mark last night, before she had fallen asleep she had quickly typed notes for acknowledgements and looking over them now, she didn’t feel the expected pang of embarrassment and regret for openly appreciating people for their support and assistance during the writing.

“To Venkat,” She mouthed in a whisper despite being the only person in the room, “Thanks for the job. Now I’m only six levels behind you.” Mindy smirked and added two words to the end. “Catching up.”

She didn’t bother to wonder if he would get the joke, she knew he would remember the conversation from so long ago without any extra nudges. The next acknowledgement, however, was probably as much as her mom would read of her paper. Not that that bothered Mindy, in fact she would be just as pleased to know her mom _wanted_ to read it but couldn’t quite find the interest in volcanoes on different planets to read to the end.

“Mom: sorry I forgot to call. I’ll come home soon for a visit.” Repeating this to herself, she backspaced the line and typed out something else. “Mom: I know you always wanted to go to Iceland but were worried about the volcanoes; I’ll know when they’re thinking of erupting now.”

“To Avie,” Mindy smiled, how could she not write something for Avie who has had to put up with long nights and boring days without her to play with? “ I’m glad you won’t know how many people know your name, it would only go to your head.”

“Lastly,” She whispered, “To my really good gardener: thanks for the seeds, I still don’t know what they are other than purple. You can tell me next weekend.” She smirked and her fingers danced over her keyboard before she could stop herself. “And who knew Egg was a good name for a cat?”

She proof read it and considered a quote, like all slightly poncy papers had, but ultimately decided against it. Mindy had never had a quote or motto to keep her focussed and no work of literature, fictional or otherwise had struck such a vibrant chord that a line or statement was strong enough in her mind to merit taking pride of place at the very start of her paper. Instead, she backspaced her name on the cover and wrote it again, just taking in the significance of adding her name to an absolute finished piece. At quarter to four, she attached it to an email and sent it off to Venkat and Teddy.

It wasn’t quite relief, but an emotional squeeze on how it would feel to tick off a hefty to-do list item. She spent consistent weeks on that and saw it through from the first sentence to the very last. Mindy remained in her seat, exploring the end of the paper in thought. She didn’t have a notion to jump up and yell, nor to slink back home to rest. It was almost limbo that filled the room, but she always thought that this room was timeless regardless of the celebration, urgency, or the despair that hung in it. This room had it all etched into its walls, and Mindy’s mark was here just as much as everyone else’s. Her effort for her paper deserved a mark, she thought, but as she considered what sort of mark it deserved, a different type of Mark lit up her phone.

[16:02:13]  
it’s 4pm. all done?

[16:02:29]  
All done. Don’t know  
what to do now.

[16:02:42]  
order a pizza and  
kick back?

[16:03:01]  
I don’t think everyone  
would appreciate pizza  
smell SatCon

[16:03:30]  
you’re at work? on a  
sunday??? did no one  
tell you i was rescued?  
you’re not prisoner.

[16:03:48]  
And yet, you’re still  
far away.

[16:04:57]  
I know I don’t have to  
be here, but I wanted  
to be productive.

Mindy shook her mouse as she sent the last message to wake up her computer to find an email from Venkat asking if she felt better with it finished to which she replied yes, but she was only going to be moving onto the next thing. That next thing was some of the duties she had been slowly neglecting and letting build up over the course of the past couple of weeks she had been using for her paper. Maybe she was being too diligent, and she probably could have let herself go home and relax, but the restless energy she had built up since she had finished her paper needed to be spent somewhere and she had a list of things to do here.

[16:05:34]  
productive? are you  
still working?

[16:06:13]  
Yep. Got some nice  
shots of Mars here  
if you’re interested?

[16:06:24]  
whereabouts?

Mindy skimmed through her data, quickly glimpsing at the points where the satellites took their images from before they were sent back to Earth. Verifying coordinates against her system, she typed out the different places of her images.

[16:13:22]  
I got; Casius, Arabia,  
Lapygia, Tyrrhenum  
and Eridania. And a  
cute shot of Tharsis  
with Mons in it.

[16:14:32]  
“a cute shot”.

[16:14:58]  
What? It is!

[16:15:11]  
you’re a cute shot.

[16:15:24]  
Shut up

[16:15:43]  
okay, i wanna see the  
cute shot.

[16:16:00]  
Oh yeah? Which one?

[16:16:30]  
you made me laugh.

[16:16:43]  
i’d rather you, but  
mons will do.

Trying not the blush, she felt the push to roll her eyes despite being the only one in the room. Instead, she took a breath and snapped a quick picture of her screen and sending it in a text.

[16:18:04]  
See? It’s cute.  
354.jpg

[16:18:42]  
i’m starting to understand  
how other people feel  
when i talk about plants.

[16:19:03]  
i think i’d rather  
see the other cute shot.

[16:19:17]  
The other cute shot  
has work to do and  
won’t be taking  
pictures.

[16:19:22]  
):

[16:20:22]  
I don’t really want it  
recorded on the Satcon  
cameras that i was  
taking selfies

[16:20:48]  
those cameras have  
caught me doing worse.

Mindy agreed, thinking back to all the stupid stunts that had been projected on the main screens. Or every time she cried in response to something he had done - his stupidity had been well documented, but she was still somewhat in the clear. She sent him another couple of messages before leaving him to entertain himself as she put her head down for another hour. It had been Mindy’s intention to work until six and then she could at least say there was a shift worked, but it was approaching eight when she resurfaced.

Hungry and parched, she twirled off her chair and into the breakroom to scavenge anything lying about. Finding a questionable bowl of fruit, she picked a few things that seemed edible and ditched the rest in the trash. She considered the kitchen that hid at the back of the breakroom in the dull hope that the staff might have left something out. She hopped the counter and found nothing apart from plastic cutlery and napkins.

With her fruit in hand, she stood with her back against the coffee table and ate, just so as to do one thing today that wasn’t sitting.

[19:48:33]  
I stole from the kitchen,  
am i a bad person?

[19:49:02]  
why did you steal?

[19:49:14]  
no food, still working.

[19:49:28]  
still a good person.

[19:49:34]  
Thanks, Judge Watney

[19:49:50]  
god, i’d love a good gavel.

Mindy breathed out a laugh in the otherwise silent room as she tried to peel a second tangerine in one length. Rolling her shoulders as she did, she considered going home, but the thought of coming in tomorrow to pick up where she was going to be leaving off made her want to keep going now. A blank slate for tomorrow sounded better, more like a fresh day than a continuation. Besides, she had managed to finish one thing today - why not two?

Mindy managed another hour of work before she came to the conclusion that two tangerines and a bruised apple was nowhere near enough and she was hungry all over again. When Mark text her asking if she was still there and how things were, she replied with one word: hungry. Her issue now, however, was that she could see the end of tonight’s load and couldn’t bring herself to abandon it now. But she felt it was alright to put it on hold and answer a call from Mark. Putting him on speaker on her desk felt therapeutic for some reason. Mindy put it down to how natural it was to have him calling, how natural it was to talk to him so often and how normal this was to her life now.

“No more food to steal from the kitchen then, huh?”

“No, I checked.” Mindy replied with a sigh, hoping the rumble of her stomach wasn’t picked up by her phone.

“Nothing left in a microwave from a ditsy employee?”

“If someone had been as stupid to leave their own lunch in a microwave, I don’t think I’d want to have it anyway.”

“You’re a rubbish survivor if that’s your attitude.” Mark said, his sarcastic tone making her giggle. In the brief silence, she could hear the background noise of Chicago, passing cabs and groups of people.

“I’m not trying to survive, I’m just hungry at work.” Mindy pointed out and shook her head. She looked back to her screen and started typing out some notes over her images. “But the sooner I finish, the sooner I can get home.”

“You leaving soon?”

“Probably not, I’ll be here for another… hour maybe.” Mindy estimated with a quick glance the clock on her screen.

“If you could have anything to eat right now, what’d it be?” Mark asked, prompting her to answer by repeating ‘anything’ as she hummed in thought.

“Something bad, like a McDonald’s - with a milkshake.”

“Oh yeah? What kind?”

“Chocolate, obviously.”

“Really? I would’ve pinned you for strawberry.” Mark said, quite surprised.

“Nah, needs to be chocolate.”

“Alright, with what though? Big Mac?”

“Nope, crispy chicken ranch BLT and fries.” Mindy said, nodding along as she pictured it. “This is a really bad conversation ‘cause now I’m starving and will definitely be going to McDonalds on the way home - thanks, Mark.”

“Getting grumpy?”

“ _No_ ,” Mindy refuted, but the bite in her tone had her admitting that maybe she was a little too hungry to finish her work. “Maybe, I’ll just finish to the end of this and then I’m going, definitely.”

“Alright, I’ll let you finish it, but I’ll call you back to make sure you’re leaving.”

“Okay, deal.”

“See you in an hour.”

“Yeah, see you.” She let him hang up and kept on at her work, typing here and there and cataloguing her images, sending them to the right places and filing them. It wasn’t difficult, just fiddly and detailed. The actual labour of typing notes and clicking on several different million folders-within-folders was what took her time. Eventually as she found a small groove, she forgot about how hungry she was and managed to get through a fair bundle of data. An hour later, on the dot, her phone buzzed as she clicked through another length of folders to save away her last piece.

“Hey,” She said, putting her phone on loudspeaker again. “I’m leaving soon, I swear.”

“God, you’re _still_ there?”

“Yes, I’m _still_ here.” Mindy repeated defensively.

“What a workaholic.”

“Did you call me up just to judge me, or was there something else?” Mindy asked through a grin.

“Nope, just to judge you since I’m Judge Watney, right?”

“Oh, yeah - I hope this isn’t going to be a new thing.”

“Oh it won’t be for long.” Mark assured.

“So, just to judge me?” Mindy prompted, asking why he was calling.

“No, also making sure you were still there.”

“I thought you were making sure I was leaving?” Mindy asked, “Not staying.”

“Well, that wouldn’t be much use to me, now would it?”

“What?” Mindy asked, her eyes cast at her phone as the call was suddenly ended. Her brow pulled as she tried call him back, wondering why he had been cut off. With no answer she pocketed her phone and started to tidy up, telling herself she would text him on the way to her car. Mindy’s assumption that she would beat the cleaning crew at least once this week was destroyed when she heard steps up the corridor just as she was logging off her computer. She sighed and stood to bring her bag up to her desk and start to pack it. When the double doors of satcon swung open, she had a staple smile on her face for whichever cleaner it would be tonight, but it faded immediately.

“Hey.” Mark said, standing tall by the double doors with his hand up in a still wave and a smirk at his lips.

“H-” Mindy’s heart had skipped a beat before rocketing. She tried to form a sentence, but all she could only manage a word. “Hey.”

“So, uh, I was in the neighbourhood-” Mark said with a nonchalant wave of his hand.

“No you weren’t.” Mindy challenged, shaking her head as she watched him start to walk up towards her, his short dark coat accentuating his broad shoulders.

“No, I wasn’t,” He confessed, “I took a train.”

“A train.” She repeated, still shocked as she briefly wondered if she was hallucinating.

“Yeah, a train.” Mark said with a shrug.

“And you-”

“Well, I didn’t tell you-”

“Because?”

“I wanted to surprise you.” Mark said, the easy smile she had missed so much tugging at his lips.

“Colour me surprised.” She replied breathlessly.

“Well, that’s good - one thing off the list, at least.”

“What else is on the list?” Mindy asked, finally finding enough sense to stop gripping the straps of her bag with balled fists.

“Oh,” Mark lifted a bag in his left hand to show her, “I brought you-”

“My chicken ranch BLT?”

“And _chocolate_ milkshake because I felt like if I forgot that, I should probably just have went back to Chicago.”

“You came all the way from Chicago to bring me dinner?”

“...It sounds a bit excessive when you say it like that-”

“No, it’s…”

“It’s?”

“Good.” Mindy decided, nodding her head once as she stared at Mark. It had been too long since she had seen him and seeing him here with a few beads of rain in his hair, and a look in his eyes she hadn’t seen him give to anyone else, made her feel like something had stopped trying to push them apart; it was over and they weren’t up against anything any more.

“Good?” Mark asked, taking one final step towards her and stopping at the corner of her desk where they first met.

“Yeah, good.”

“Okay, good.” Mark, only a few inches from her, nodded his head and seemed glad it was ‘good’. He watched her, watching the shock work through her. His smirk returned and spread brighter in knowing that this had been the right choice. He had been so sick of being so far from her and felt the pull to go back strangle him until he could barely take it. Still, he couldn’t have come without being signed off and he wouldn’t have made it through without Mindy to lean on and complain to when he felt down. She didn’t just save him once, he could see that now. She was invaluable to him, he needed her but it was something he could feel running deeper than he could explore in a moment. In this moment, however, there was only one thing he had been desperate to explore as he reached to brush her hair behind her ear.

“I, uh, think,” Mark’s hand twitched as he stuttered, “I’m gonna ki-”

“Shut up,” Mindy whispered, rushing to throw her arms over his neck, “Just shut up-”

Mark brought one hand to her waist and the other slid to her jaw as he angled her lips to hers. There was a clear anguish for both of them that softened to an infinite relief of home and security. There was a wave of comfort and assurances; it was a first kiss in early moments, but the rush of heat in both of them felt stronger and more concrete than either had been expecting.

When Mindy’s feet had cramp she couldn’t ignore any longer, she pulled away from him, stealing one last kiss as she did.

“You don’t know how important you are to me, Mindy, I’m sorry I took so long-” Mark told her, panting slightly.

“Trains from Chicago to Houston take ages.” Mindy replied, a smirk at her lips.

“Y’know what I mean.” Mark said, rolling his eyes, “I’m sorry, you’ve been there for me through so much, and you don’t know what that means to me - I never wanted to leave you when I went, I hated it and I regretted not kissing you-” Mark’s words seemed tense in his throat as his hands tried to uselessly emphasise what he was saying.

“I know, I know, apology accepted,” Mindy nodded as she sat on the edge of her desk, holding his hands in hers, blushing as she tried to ignore the endless rich affection she wanted to spend on him .

“And I don’t like when you’re far away, so stop doing that, okay? I really would like to stop worrying about you.”

“Mm, deal.” Mark leaned in to kiss her again, tipping her jaw up towards him. After a few moments, Mindy stood and pressed herself against him, trying to fill up on what she had been craving. She ran her hand through his hair and slung another over his shoulder and felt his resting on the small of her back. She suddenly couldn’t remember what she had felt for him before now, as right now she was sure the bursting in her heart was eclipsing any conceivable idea of her feelings for him.

“Foods gonna get cold.” Mark muttered as they paused for a breath. Mindy’s rested her head against his chin and shrugged.

“NASA has microwaves,” She smiled and closed her eyes as Mark laughed against her and kissed her forehead. Looking up, she pressed a lingering kiss to his lips. “So, it can wait ‘cause I’m not finished.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was a long time coming. I'm sorry it took so long but real life got in the way, what can i say?  
> i don't want to make this note too long so i'm just going to say thanks. to everyone who read it, liked it, left kudos and comments - i love you.  
> here's to the next bundle of one shots coming your way soon!  
> don't unsubscribe from this one just yet, though...


	32. Epilogue

Being the weekend with nothing left on her list to do, no immediate space-related urgencies and a cat that was still pleasantly occupied with his own company, Mindy had drifted long beyond her usual get up. The sun was high, warm and spread across her kitchenette by the time she surfaced. Leaving the comfort of her bed for the comfort of a coffee and her sofa, she managed to catch the end of the morning news as she flicked through missed notifications on her phone. Concluding that there was nothing much happening in the world beyond the usual, she left her phone on the table while she went for a refill of her coffee, her mind wandering to what she could accomplish today. She had set her mug on the counter and raised her hand to lift the decanter when something gently purple and luminously yellow caught her eye. Pushing her glasses off her head and onto the bridge of her nose she inspected further to find her precious seeds she had been meticulously growing had flowered. The petals weren’t detailed but wore a luscious violet. They surrounded a bright yellow trumpeting middle like the five points of a star. Three of the flowers had unfurled while two remained close, but the same faintly lilac hues were sliding out from the green.

With a surge of pride, joy and excitement, she grabbed for her phone, almost tumbling over the back of her sofa for it, to thoroughly document her amazing achievements. Never had she been able to plant something and keep it healthy enough for weeks on end to have it flower. More than that, it was in such brilliant health that the fruits were shining and heavy, and not unlike white tomatoes. She snapped away happily, filling her few social media pages with her great achievements before taking a sunny snap of the he small flowers soaking up the light and sending it on to Mark with several exclamation points.

[11:35:11]  
!!!!!!!  
[img453.jpg]

[11:28:54]  
holy shit mindy! i  
knew you’d manage!!!  
congrats!!

After her elation she realised that even though they had flowered she still had no idea what they were. The white fruits that were far too obscure to accurately label with her basic knowledge of vegetables being as long as what she could spot in a supermarket. She tilted her head and lifted leaves in the hope of finding a single defining feature before turning to the internet. Searching her way through various flower-labelling sites, she struggled to find anything that looked like what she had. She spent almost too long ticking boxes and describing colours and shapes before she gave up and called Mark.

“I still don’t know what these are, flower websites are useless.” Mindy told him, putting him on speaker as she ran through pages of flower results for her descriptions, finding nothing similar.

“Maybe you’re not putting in the right info.” Mark suggested.

"Probably not,” Mindy said with a shrug, “I’m not a botanist, I don’t know what this stuff means - whats dico...ty-tyledoneae versus mono...coty...ledoneae?” Mindy sounded it out slowly and heard Mark half snort on the other side at her effort.

“S’not important - what you have is a recently documented species if that helps your search.” Mindy sighed, trying to see if there was an option for the site to search ‘recent finds’.

“Where are you anyway? Sounds weird.” Mindy asked, listening to some sort of screeching chaos.

“I’m trying to buy paint for my new place 'cause you know I hate that weird orange, but this Lowe’s has some sort of demonstration going on for an electric saw - like toys for dads.”

“Well, I hope they’re having fun, but, can’t you just tell me what these flowers are and end my misery?”

“Nope, not unless you concede defeat.” Mark said, leaving the noise of background sawing behind.

“What happens if I concede defeat and can’t find the plant, then?”

“You have to tell Kapoor.” He said plainly, but the smug smirk on his lips could be heard.

“No, no way.” Mindy rejected that sternly as even the thought of telling Venkat that not only had he been right all that time, but that she was now _dating_ Mark gave her such a chill she couldn’t bare to consider it any longer.

“He needs to know, it's been a while.”

“He really doesn’t need to know anything.” Mindy retorted, sure that Venkat knew too much already anyway. “Why do you think he needs to know?”

“‘Cause he sees you every day and sees me a lot so, I don’t want it to be a secret - it's the consequence of not finding the plant.” Mindy swore softly as she clicked onto a different flower cataloguing website and tried again. “So, you either have to tell him or I get to tell him if you win.”

“None of those options are prizes, y’know,” Her fingers skimmed through options, trying to quickly find the plant she had on her windowsill before Mark gave her a time limit or called her to stop. “And why do you _get_ to tell him if I _have_ to tell him? What’s the difference there? This feels like a very ‘heads I win, tails you lose’ scenario and I'm onto it.”

“Okay, okay, how about this - if you can't name the plant within the allotted time you have to: tell venkat we're together, but, to soften the blow, you can help me paint next weekend.” Mindy scoffed as she scrolled to a new page of results.

“How am I only finding out how bad your negotiation tactics are now?” Mindy shook her head and decided the outcomes of the bet for herself “I lose: I tell venkat, but, I win: you tell him and our date on Friday is double with Claire and Pep, okay?” Mark hummed in consideration while she laid out the rules. “And regardless, I help you paint next weekend.

“Deal,” Mark agreed. “Wait, why am I saying deal? I was meant to set the terms.”

“‘Cause we just found out you can't arrange furniture.”

“Wow, gloves are off here” Mark laughed, “Okay, starting now you have fifteen minutes, meanwhile I’m gonna ask what you think of these paint names ‘cause I have no idea what the difference between White Cotton and White Mist - is there a difference?”

“White Cotton will be like cotton sheet white, but White Mist will be misty, I guess -” Mindy shrugged, not sure how else to differentiate the two.

“What a great explanation, definitely makes more sense now.”

“Well _ask for help_ , I’m a little busy right now.”

“Alright, alright - what colour should my kitchen be?”

“Black.”

“Be serious.”

“Then tell me what the fuck these flowers are!”

“Oh, are you giving up?”

“...No, but this is ridiculous, they’re not anywhere on these websites.” Still, after another five minutes had gone by, no turn of phrase, list of descriptive qualities or amount of ticky boxes had found her a flower that looked enough like hers to suggest an answer. It was then that the thought came to her that it may be a crossbreed. He was a botanist after all, he could’ve done something to these seeds and made his own - that’d still be classed as ‘new’... but that was just sneaky.

“Did you crossbreed? Are these like _your_ plant? That’s cheating.”

“Getting warmer, you’re both right and wrong.”

“What does that mean?” Mindy asked, feeling her anxiety levels rise as she checked the time; it was just a bit of fun and it wasn’t her fault she got competitive, but she really didn’t want to tell Venkat.

With no helpful reply, she went back to her searches but, adding in the word ‘crossbreed’ got her nowhere except got her a few questionable images in her search. Removing that word to add others in her final few minutes she didn’t get much further. A few wikipedia articles told her nothing of use as she crossed them off and remained scrolling through google in the hope of anything at all. To be fair to herself, she realised just how many purple flowers with bright yellow middles there were, and with rapidly diminishing hope she knew she’d never find the right one. Deciding that accepting defeat gracefully would feel better than having her time run out and still be frantically searching, she spoke up.

“Alright, I quit.”

“Quitting? Is that what Mindy Park would do? Satellite extraordinaire, astronaut hunter, scientist and professional-”

“Yes, just tell me what they are, Mark.” Mindy jokingly snapped, crossing off all her tabs.

“Touchy,” Mark cleared his throat before he told her, “Ready for this? It’s called ‘Solanum Watneyi’ - my own real plant named after me.”

Mindy didn’t know what to say to that as her head processed what was obviously a complete goose chase. “So, not only was this whole thing rigged, you named a flower after yourself?”

“No! Real nice botanists far away in Australia named it after me! I’ll tell you about it at dinner - does Wednesday suit?”

“Wednesday’s fine and you can choose where since I quit, but it’s a double with Claire ‘cause you cheated.” Mindy pushed, not accepting this as a fair game. 

“Okay, I’ll admit you didn’t have a high chance of finding it yourself, so what about that Brazillian Steakhouse, maybe?"

“Sounds good, I’ll let them know.”

“You’re still on Kapoor-duty, y’know.” Mark reminded her while Mindy disagreed.

“You _cheated_ , that’s on you.”

“It's not cheating! But, fine, I’d love to tell him.” Mark happily replied.

“Why?”

“‘Cause I think it’s a good thing that I'm happy about and people would want to know.”

“Well, it is a good thing and I’m really happy too, but he’s my boss-” Mindy said, a small plea in her tone.

“He’s not _just_ your boss, though, he’s like a friend-slash-work-dad.”

“Work dad.” Mindy rolled her eyes, “Just ‘cause you called Mitch that for the crew, doesn’t mean Venkat is mine.”

“No, it does.” Mark assured.

“Anyways, I’m gonna buy some of this White… Mist and I’ll be over at four and we can head to the park for the game, alright?” 

“Yeah, see you then.” 

Before she started thinking about getting ready for their date at the Minute Maid Park for a Mariners game, her attention went back to her plant. Solanum Watneyi. No wonder she couldn’t find it, it must only be a few months old. With a quick search of the proper name, she found a research article detailing the plant as well as the cause for naming it after the world’s most famous botanist. Another, less official, article by the same author thanked Mark for ‘making botany cool’ which Mindy couldn’t help but laugh at and agree with. She supposed it was nicer this way where it was named for his valiant efforts on Mars and on Earth than being named after him in memorial. At least this way he got to appreciate it - and send seeds for people to grow. Her finger went out to stroke the petals, finding them like silk and very lightly fragrant. Knowing now what it was, she thought back on all her moments worrying if any feelings she had had for him would ever be reciprocated when she had this on her windowsill, a growing beacon. In a visual sense the plant fitted well with the rest of her neutral decor, giving her apartment a fresh point of colour, but in a personal sense it felt much more grand. Mark had been a huge part of her life in the past four years, although it was only in the past several months did she get to know the man behind the spacesuit.

She was glad for all of it, even the sleepless nights, the tears, the upset - without it, they might not have been where they were now: a fourth date to a baseball game in Houston. They had merged quickly and dates felt effortless, any anxiety she had over going with him only boiled off to pure excitement. Even just post-work outings or dinner at either one of their apartments felt as natural and stable as any of those hundreds of texts and calls. Still, four dates in and she hadn’t made the slightest dent in the affection she had for him - which was something she was discovering to be endless. If she regretted one thing, it would only be that she never intervened quicker, never just said something, never told him she liked him. If the plant was anything to go by, she could have trusted that he would felt the same early on anyway. Regardless, she was happy. She was already in love with Mark and she had no doubt he wasn’t far behind, if not on the same page.

Leaving her love-soaked thoughts, she came back to the moment, picking Avie up from her ankles.

“What do you want to do today, Avie?” He said nothing as Mindy flopped onto her sofa, one leg tucked under her. “Do you just want scratched for the next two hours? Mm?” Avie closed his eyes as Mindy ran her nails over his head and between his ears. He leaned into her nails and purred while she flicked through channels on the tv. Nothing had changed, not really, she just had a whole world of new opportunities and experiences to explore that she was sure were not too far from the horizon.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This really is the end of this fic now.  
> Nothing to add at all. All done. Ends tied. Finished. 
> 
> Thanks everyone who read it and kept up with it, I hope you enjoyed this weird/ unplanned journey. Keep an eye out for one shots, though. They'll be a continuation from this since this was just my way of setting them up and getting them together. Sure, I could've probably managed that in 5k but eh, where's the fun in that? 
> 
> Thanks again, guys. 
> 
> And see? I told you I wouldn't really kill the cat.


End file.
